


Perfect Places

by killerfrost



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Eventual Smut, M/M, Multi, Romance, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-06
Updated: 2018-03-18
Packaged: 2019-03-14 13:00:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13590561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/killerfrost/pseuds/killerfrost
Summary: There’s a gap in his life that not even his good grades, singing lead at the university choir, and being the president of a club can fill. Beneath all that glory, Kim Junmyeon is just another lonely, burnt out serial heartbreaker. Will things turn upside down for him when Park Chanyeol walks into his life?





	1. One

It’s always been like that.

  
Junmyeon remembers his first day of high school. The proud faces of his friends and family. The awards he won for his high grades and perfect attendance. The musicals he starred in. The basketball team he was a part of - the school’s no. 1 pride.

  
He remembers the first time he stepped foot in Australia, having transferred to one of its top universities from SNU. How proud everyone was when they heard Kim Junmyeon was accepted at a top tier university abroad for transfer.

  
But most of all, he remembers the three words his parents had always said to him.

  
“Make us proud.”

  
Junmyeon keeps these three words close to his heart. And so, that’s what Junmyeon did and what Junmyeon now does. Or at least, that’s what he strives to do, along with his cousin and long-time best friend Minseok who’s currently in his second year of medical school.  
He’s seen Minseok struggle through it all, helping his parents fund his education by giving lessons to penultimate year pre-med and bioengineering students (such as the Chinese transfer students Zhang Yixing - Junmyeon’s ex, Lu Han, and their friend Kim Jongdae - Junmyeon’s no. 1 rival at choir), being on the first class honour roll for two consecutive semesters, assisting his professors with medical research, helping his half-brother Jiyong with his clothing business. Minseok has always been Junmyeon’s role model, yet Junmyeon has always felt like he’s nothing compared to the ever-so-hardworking boy.

  
Will Junmyeon ever be enough?

  
Junmyeon stares into the distance, sipping his coffee. He made it a habit to study at this coffee shop every Saturday (despite his vocal coach telling him to cut down on caffeine). He would usually go through some readings and take notes while finishing off his coffee - and checking out the barista.

  
He’s tall, a bit on the skinny side with a porcelain complexion and sharp cat eyes lined with eyeliner and a sweet, yet melancholic smile. If anything, he looks like a vampire. Enough to make Junmyeon figuratively swoon over his beauty.

  
“His name is Kim Jongwoon. Currently studying IT at our uni,” Sehun blurts out. “He goes by the name Yesung and he hates it when we call him Jongwoon. You know, just in case you were curious.”

  
“So...he’s your classmate?”

  
Sehun nods.

  
“Can you introduce me to him?”

  
“Nah, hyung,” Sehun breaks into laughter. “Trust me, you wouldn’t-“

  
“Why not?” Junmyeon smirks. Oh Sehun has been his matchmaker for a year now. Yet no matter who Sehun pairs him up with, Junmyeon never sees him or her as more than a fling. Except for one person: Irene Bae. But that was a long time ago and now Irene’s full-on crushing on Sehun.

  
“Hyung,” Sehun shakes his head, still laughing. “Didn’t you tell me you wanted to get into a serious relationship this year? I don’t see you and Jongwoon...I mean Yesung going anywhere.”

  
“Well, he’s going to bed with me.”

  
“Good God, Junmyeon hyung,” Sehun sighs as he turns away to look at an incoming customer who proceeds to have a chat with Jongwoon (we mean Yesung) at the counter. “You’ll ditch him in a week. Besides, I think he’s taken.”

  
Junmyeon sighs. “Why are all the good guys taken?”

  
“How about...the good girls? There’s Irene -“

  
“We DO NOT talk about Irene in this household!”

  
Sehun is pulled into laughter once again. “Chill, hyung. I was just joking.”

  
“Is that really his boyfriend?” Junmyeon squints at the boy at the counter. He’s seen him around a lot.

  
Too tall for his own good. That’s Junmyeon’s first impression of him. He’s big and scarily tall, yet whenever he smiles his puppy eyes light up and his face is decorated with the most adorable dimples Junmyeon has ever seen. How Junmyeon wants to run up to him and squish those slightly chubby cheeks.

  
He’s cute, but he’s not getting Jongwoon’s ass anytime soon, Junmyeon smirks to himself.

  
“Nope. Like I said, I was just messing around with you, hyung,” Sehun answers Junmyeon’s last question.

  
“Then who the hell is he?” Junmyeon whispers into Sehun’s ear, almost making him spill his macchiato. “I see him around a lot and he’s always carrying a guitar on his back but I don’t have a clue-“

  
“Yesung’s flatmate,” Sehun answers. “Can you not whisper into my ear like that? I could’ve spilled coffee all over my new Supreme hoodie!”

  
Junmyeon sighs. This kid. Ever since Sehun started hanging out with Baekhyun, he’s been so obsessed with checking out the latest Supreme drop every now and then. Junmyeon has never liked Baekhyun, but he can’t show any form of hostility towards the latter since he’s one of Sehun’s best friends - and Yixing’s current boyfriend. Not that Baekhyun likes Junmyeon either, though. Junmyeon is often the object of Baekhyun’s shit-talking, especially when it comes to Yixing-related stuff.

  
“So if he’s Yesung’s flatmate…”

  
“Thinking of a threesome, hyung?”  
Junmyeon gives the younger boy a quick hit on the shoulder. “He’s cute, but I’m not into threesomes. Unlike you, Jongin, and Baekhyun.”

  
“Hey! We’re just friends!”

  
“With benefits. Anyway, introduce me to one of them, will you?”

  
“Sorry to disturb your moment, but we’re about to close,” a smooth voice calls out. “Oh, hey there Sehun-ah.”

  
“Jongwoon - I mean Yesung hyung,” Sehun smirks. “I see Chanyeol hyung’s here too.”

  
The extremely tall boy - “Giant Cutie”, as Junmyeon had named him in his head gives Sehun his biggest, dorkiest smile, waving at the raven-haired boy. “Hi, Sehunnie.”

  
The boy’s deep, velvety voice resonates through Junmyeon’s mind. Sehunnie? Did he just call him Sehunnie? Junmyeon tries his best not to laugh. This kid. He can seem so sweet and innocent sometimes.

  
“Chanyeol hyung, this is Junmyeon hyung, my senior from SNU and my flatmate. He’s also a transfer student like me.”

  
“Hi, I’m Park Chanyeol, nice to meet you,” Giant Cutie leans forward to shake Junmyeon’s hand.

  
“I’m Junmyeon. Kim Junmyeon.”

  
Uh, oh, that came out awkward.

  
Chanyeol lets out a soft chuckle. “So, I assume you’ve been here for a year, at least?”

  
Junmyeon nods. “Yeah, I transferred last year.”

  
“With…Minseok and Jongdae?”

  
“Yeah - hold on, how did you know-“

  
“Jongdae took a music elective last semester. We were in the same project group. He did the vocals and I composed. Minseok was always around Jongdae.”

  
Is. Junmyeon could probably write a book on how Minseok is in denial that he’s madly in love, or obsessed with one of the bioengineering students he tutors.

  
“I’m guessing you’re a music student,” Junmyeon blurts out.

  
Chanyeol nods. “Music production. Did architecture for a year but dropped it for music. How ‘bout you?”

  
“Guess.”

  
“I’m guessing...law?”

  
Junmyeon shakes his head, laughing. “Wrong!”

  
“Engineering?”

  
Junmyeon shakes his head again.

  
“Business then?”

  
“Close. Business economics with a music minor,” Junmyeon smirks. Chanyeol gives him an I knew it smile, right before he looks out of the window and spots a familiar figure - Lu Han - and a very tall young man talking to him in Chinese.

  
“Music minor? So you’re doing music electives?”

  
“Correct. I’m doing MUSC2261 this semester.”

  
Chanyeol’s big eyes light up once more. “I’m doing that course too! Wanna partner up for the project?”

  
Junmyeon pauses to look at Chanyeol once again. Something about him makes Junmyeon want to pull him in...even just for a music project. “Sure.”

  
“Can I have your number? Just in case-“

  
He doesn’t even get to finish his sentence before Junmyeon starts scribbling down his number on a piece of paper.

  
“Thanks. Anyway, my boyfriend’s here. I gotta go now,” Chanyeol grins widely. How cute. “Talk to you later.”

  
But Junmyeon swears, there’s a flash of sadness in Chanyeol’s eyes as he leaves and links up his fingers with the extremely tall Chinese man.

  
And that was the night Kim Junmyeon met Park Chanyeol, not knowing what he just got himself into.


	2. Two

If anything, Minseok has always been attentive. More attentive than Junmyeon wishes he is. It’s no surprise to Junmyeon when Minseok points out the apparent look of disappointment on Junmyeon’s face when he walks in. Minseok’s always had an eye for the smallest details.

  
“Got rejected by the emo barista?” Minseok asks, still setting up the dining table.

  
Junmyeon shakes his head. “Even worse. I almost accidentally stole someone’s boyfriend.”

  
“What?”

  
Minseok’s jaw drops.

  
“The emo barista has a cute roommate. Gave him my number and the next thing I knew he held hands with one of Luhan’s friends.”

  
“What?” Minseok exclaims, his jaw dropping even further, dropping a plastic plate in the process. “Don’t tell me it’s…”

  
“Park Chanyeol,” Sehun sighs. “It’s not your Jongdae, hyung. Chill.”

  
Minseok cackles. “Oh, Chanyeol. Jongdae hangs around him and his boyfriend a lot. He’s really nice. Cheeky, but nice. Also stop calling him my Jongdae, will you?”

  
“What’s with you and that Jongdae kid? Seriously-“

  
“Nothing. Nothing happened between me and Jongdae, okay? He just happens to be someone I tutor.”

  
Upon hearing the name of his biggest rival at the choir, Junmyeon can’t help but cringe. His cousin is so in love with him. It’s just a matter of question of when he’ll stop denying his feelings for the crazy-smart bioengineering student who doesn’t actually need tutoring to ace his classes - Junmyeon knows the feeling is mutual. Jongdae’s been full-on stalking his cousin ever since that one time Minseok picked Junmyeon up from choir practice.

  
“Right,” Junmyeon smiles sarcastically, making his way to his room.

  
“You’re acting as if I had this big crush on that...squeaky duck,” Minseok grumbles.

  
“You know what else is big?”

  
“Oh my God, Junmyeon, stop! No one wants to hear your lame ass jokes!”

  
“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyway, I’ve got some studying to do. Need to finish revising before Minho’s party tomorrow night. Catch you guys later.”

  
“Kim Junmyeon. Always so hardworking,” Sehun grins as Junmyeon closes the door.

  
“Well, at least he has a party-study balance and he’s not partying all the time like you and your friends!” Junmyeon hears Minseok’s sassy squeal from the living room. His phone starts beeping the minute he flops down on his chair and opens his lecture notes. Yixing. Who else could it be?

  
>Zhang Yixing: wyd

  
Of course, Junmyeon isn’t in the mood to tell his ex boyfriend what he’s doing. Junmyeon isn’t one to always dwell in the past. He sighs as he sets his phone on silent mode and flicks through his notes again, making sure he thoroughly understands everything his professor talked about earlier that day. As if Yixing was more important than his academics.  
Yixing used to be important. Yixing made him happy. But Yixing was the reason why he couldn’t take relationships seriously anymore. The reason why Junmyeon now goes around jumping at everyone’s heart. Sure, Yixing often proclaims he’s a “changed man” and he deserves another shot at love - which Resident Bitch Byun Baekhyun has given him. But boys are boys and Yixing is Yixing. Not long after he finishes his study session, Junmyeon’s phone starts vibrating, one message after another. Junmyeon’s used to this by now.

  
>Zhang Yixing: myeon  
>Zhang Yixing: myeonnie  
>Zhang Yixing: busy studying i see  
>Zhang Yixing: are u coming to baek and sehun’s party tmr night?  
>Zhang Yixing: or will u be busy studying  
>Zhang Yixing: oh wait i heard ur coming to minho’s party with the other snobby ass club presidents instead  
>Zhang Yixing: ?  
>Unknown number: hi. Is this kim junmyeon?

  
For the first time in a while, Junmyeon smiles to himself.

  
>Kim Junmyeon: yes, and who might this be?  
>Unknown number: ah, so it wasn’t a scam! ><  
>Unknown number: it’s me chanyeol. The tall dude with the guitar you met at yesung’s cafe  
>Unknown number: remember me?  
Of course.  
>Kim Junmyeon: oh hey there chanyeol  
>Kim Junmyeon: what’s up?  
>Park Chanyeol: not much. Wanna start practicing tmr?  
>Kim Junmyeon: sure. What time and where?  
>Park Chanyeol: whenever. I’m free after 3. When are you free?  
>Kim Junmyeon: got lectures at 9 and 2 and choir at 4. 5 maybe, if that’s ok with you?  
>Park Chanyeol: ooo you sure are busy  
>Park Chanyeol: 5 pm’s ok for me  
>Park Chanyeol: wanna come over? I have a small studio at my place

  
Junmyeon smirks. Oh yes, he’s definitely coming over. Even if it’s just to practice for their final project - a jazzy rendition of two pop songs, one in English and one in a foreign language, and a performance in front of the whole student body with a full orchestra or band if they’re good enough.

  
>Kim Junmyeon: sure. See you tmr  
>Park Chanyeol: see ya! :)

  
Holding his phone close to his chest, Junmyeon can’t help but smile. Even if this boy is taken, Junmyeon knows he’s got the power to snatch him away from whoever that tall Chinese guy is.

  
*

  
“You’re here! Come in, come in!”

  
The giant, big-eyed puppy puts an arm around Junmyeon as he ushers him inside. God, he feels so overdressed in his white button-up shirt. Chanyeol seems so homey in his oversized black hoodie (Junmyeon wonders what size he bought it in, considering how big the boy is) and boxers - with his black hair still styled up.

  
The living room isn’t exactly the tidiest place Junmyeon’s been to in a while - not that Junmyeon really minds since his room is equally as messy (luckily he has Minseok and Sehun to tidy and clean up for him). It just looks so lived in with the piles of clothes and magazines (and toy cars) here and there. Junmyeon wonders if the tall Chinese guy lives here too. Judging from how spacious the apartment is, there must be at least three people living here. Unless Chanyeol and Yesung are filthy rich enough to afford this place all by themselves, of course.

  
“Sorry for the mess,” Chanyeol scratches his head. “Kris doesn’t like it when I leave a mess but Yesung and I didn’t have time to tidy up-“

  
“It’s okay,” Junmyeon smiles reassuringly. “Who’s Kris, by the way?”

  
“Oh. My boyfriend. He’s coming home soon. We’d better get started.”

  
Chanyeol leads the shorter man to a loft upstairs, in which he has a set of recording equipment all set up along with his Macbook, a keyboard, a drum set, microphones, and two guitars. Junmyeon wonders if the Parks are even richer than his parents - to be able to afford all this and a son studying music abroad.

  
One thing for sure, the Parks seem so supportive of their son’s music hobby. Unlike a certain family who limited their son to singing at the choir and starring in school musicals.

  
“Wow. This looks...cool…”

  
“I know,” Chanyeol gives him a cocky smile.

  
“Feels like you’re my producer or something,” Junmyeon chuckles. “Anyway, let’s get started. Wait, you haven’t heard me sing, have you? I should really-“

  
Chanyeol’s lips are pulled into a wide smile. “I have. I’ve never missed a performance by the choir.”

  
“What?”

  
“Yeah. You’re the lead singer, that I know. Out of all the tenors, you and Jongdae really stand out.”

  
Jongdae again. Junmyeon can feel his blood boiling. “Um, yeah, I sing lead. Jongdae’s just...there.”

  
“Have you picked the songs yet? Or should I pick them for you? I’m fine with anything, really. It’s just that I need to be in control of the musical arrangement.”

  
“Yeah. I picked Listen by Beyonce and Nonfiction by K.Will. Might need to lower the key for the Beyonce one, though.”

  
“That’s fine, I can do that. Shall we start with K.Will now?”

  
Junmyeon nods. As he starts to sing accompanied by Chanyeol playing the keyboard, his huge fingers beautifully dancing on the black and white keys, Junmyeon can feel himself swaying away, giving himself in to the melody.

  
There’s something else that sways him away too.

  
The way the giant’s eyes light up and the way he smiles whenever he touches a piano key. Junmyeon has never seen anyone so happy, so blissful before.

  
“That was...breathtaking,” Chanyeol remarks, positioning himself to look up at Junmyeon from his seat. “Are you sure you didn’t eat a CD for breakfast?”

  
“Ahaha, nope.”

  
Noises start to come out from the living room. Junmyeon can hear the sound of things being put in place - must be Chanyeol’s bitch of a boyfriend. At the rate he’s going, Junmyeon’s sure he’s close to making his first enemy in Australia.

  
“Oh, Kris is here,” Chanyeol rises up, making his way to the door and downstairs. Yesung and the Chinese man are in the living room, putting Chanyeol’s toys and magazines back to their usual place.

  
“Put this in the trash bin, Jongwoon,” Kris hands a broken toy car to Yesung.

  
“I told you not to call me that!”

  
“Whatever, man. Oh, look who’s here. Ready for tonight’s party at Baek’s, babe?”

  
Chanyeol smirks. “Yeah. I’m bringing Junmyeon here along with us!”

  
Junmyeon wants to scream. When did he tell Chanyeol he was coming to Baekhyun’s party? He was planning to go to another party tonight anyway, one at psychology student society president Choi Minho’s house instead of this one. No, Junmyeon would rather hang with his fellow club presidents Minho, Seohyun, Chaerin, and Siwon, as snobby as they are.

  
“Is that so?” Kris squints at the shorter man, judging him from head to toe before handing out a hand to shake. “I’m Kris Wu. Nice to meet you.”

  
“Kim Junmyeon, nice to meet you too.” Not.

  
“You coming with us to Baekhyun’s tonight?”

  
“I didn’t plan to, but okay I guess.”

  
“Great!” Chanyeol grins. “I’ll go get changed now.”

  
After what seems to Junmyeon like the most awkward ten minutes of his life, Chanyeol walks out of his room wearing a plain white T-shirt underneath a black denim jacket and a pair of jeans that fit his long legs so well. Junmyeon can’t help but smile a bit - he looks so hot. So...dreamy. That smirk on Chanyeol’s face isn’t making it any easier for Junmyeon not to imagine the things he could do to the taller man.

  
The trip to Baekhyun’s house is equally as awkward as the ten minutes of silence Junmyeon spent with Kris. Along the car ride, the only ones talking are Chanyeol and his (cough annoying cough) boyfriend.

  
“Here we are,” Chanyeol says as he parks his car in front of a house Junmyeon always dreads of entering.

  
First of all, none of the three boys living in that house except for Kyungsoo likes Junmyeon. Second of all, Junmyeon’s pretty sure Yixing left his mark on that house when he did the naughty naughty with Baekhyun for the first time.

  
“Oh, hey, hyung, you’re here,” he hears a familiar voice call out. “Minho’s party too boring for you?”

  
“Shut up, Sehun,” Junmyeon laughs. “I didn’t even end up going to Minho’s. Chanyeol dragged me here.”

  
“You said yes,” Chanyeol reasons. “So I brought you here along with - hey, where did Kris go?”

  
It suddenly dawns on Junmyeon - it’s just him and Chanyeol now.  
“Probably off to see Yixing, Luhan, and Zitao over there,” Sehun points at the crowd. “Anyway, why don’t you guys start enjoying the drinks and the pizza? It’s all right over there. Enjoy the party!”

And so, the youngest of the bunch shuffles away into the crowd, leaving the two looking into each other’s eyes.

  
“Uh, I think we should get the pizza and drinks now,” Junmyeon points out. “Are you driving tonight?”

  
“Yeah.”

  
“Okay, then don’t drink-“

  
“Chill, Myeonnie,” Chanyeol gives him a sweet smile. “I have high tolerance just like Sehun.”

  
Myeonnie?

  
Junmyeon can’t believe what he just heard. He decides it’s time for him to grab a slice of pizza and a bottle of apple soju and forget what he just heard - exactly what Chanyeol decides to do too.

  
“Wow, this tastes good!” Chanyeol takes another bite of the pepperoni pizza. “The next time I’m hosting a party, I’ll make sure to order from this restaurant.”

Why is he so cute? Junmyeon finds it hard to stop asking himself why as he gulps some more soju into his system.

  
“Or maybe I’ll try to make the pizza myself,” Chanyeol babbles on.

  
“You cook?”

  
Chanyeol nods. “I love cooking. Probably my third hobby after music and bowling. Do you cook?”

  
“Sometimes,” Junmyeon replies. “We have Minseok at home. He usually cooks for Sehun and me. Minseok’s like our mom. He picks me up from choir performances and looks after Sehun all the time.”

  
“This choir thing...has it always been what you’re passionate about?”

  
“Yeah. I love singing. The choir is the only place where I can freely express myself.”

  
Chanyeol gives him an “I understand” nod as he stands up. “By the way, I really need to go to the toilet. Go dance with the others or something. I’ll catch up with you later, okay? Don’t drink too much.”

  
“Got it,” Junmyeon puts his thumbs up, earning a soft, deep chuckle from Chanyeol as the taller man walks into the nearest bathroom.

  
More soju. Junmyeon needs more soju.  
He makes his way to the other side of the room, where another box of bottles is neatly placed in the corner. He can see Irene from a distance, putting her arm around Sehun as Sehun gives her a cold look and walks away. She still hasn’t given up yet, he sees. Junmyeon laughs to himself as he sits down and looks the other way.

  
Kris.

  
The tall man stands in front of a familiar figure, cupping the other man’s face in his gigantic hands.

  
”Fuck the world and everyone else in it,” Kris mutters. “I just want you.”

  
“But what about-“

  
“Park Chanyeol can go to hell.”

  
Their lips touch, consuming each other’s in a fiery kiss. Junmyeon steps back, trying not to step on the bottle cracks until he falls backwards into something soft and warm. A pair of strong arms lift him up as he gathers his balance.

  
“K-Kris?”

  
Junmyeon turns his back to see Chanyeol, glassy-eyed and pale. He looks like he’s barely able to stand on his own.

  
“Yeol,” Kris sighs. “It’s not what you think-“

  
“Don’t come near me,” Chanyeol mutters, his face now red with anger. “Don’t touch me. Don’t call or text me ever again.”

  
“Babe, listen-“

  
“I’m not your babe, Luhan is!”

  
“Babe, are you sure you’re not drunk? You look flushed. Maybe it’s time to go home.”

  
“I’m not drunk. You know I have high tolerance!”

  
“Yeol,” Junmyeon cuts in, taking the angry man’s hand in his. “Let’s go. I’ll come with you.”

  
Chanyeol grabs his hand softly as a tear drops from his eye. “Okay.”

  
The ride back to Chanyeol’s apartment is filled with Chanyeol crying his heart out and Junmyeon giving him occasional pats on the back. What an asshole Kris is. Junmyeon may be a serial dater, but he’d never stoop so low. Cheating has never been and will never be in his dictionary. What did Kris ever do to deserve Chanyeol?

  
Chanyeol is kind, warm, smart, multitalented, a bit cocky at times, and good-looking. What did Kris do to deserve such a precious man?

  
“Hey, we’re here now.”

  
“Junmyeon?” Chanyeol calls out.

  
“Yes?”

  
“Stay with me for the night?”


	3. Three

“Stay with me for tonight?”

 

Junmyeon can feel his heart racing upon hearing the taller boy’s deep, feeble voice. Unsure of what to say. He’s bad at comforting others (except for Sehun, of course), he’s bad at handling a friend’s breakup, he’s bad at relationships...everything in his mind is pointing him at the door, screaming at him to leave. But if there’s one thing he’s good at, it’s to distract others.

 

_ Dumbass, you just met him. _

 

_ But he’ll like it! _

 

_ No, no. You’ll ruin this...whatever this thing is. _

 

_ What thing? _

 

_ Shut up, Junmyeon. _

 

_ Okay, Junmyeon. _

 

“Uh…”

 

“Hm?” Chanyeol wipes another tear from his face. “Yesung’s out for the night and I just don’t wanna be alone tonight, that’s all. I mean it’s perfectly fine if you don’t want -”

 

“I’ll stay with you,” Junmyeon gives him a reassuring smile, ushering Chanyeol into his bedroom, his hand still on the black-haired boy’s broad shoulder. “You okay?”

 

Chanyeol nods. “Yeah. I’m going to get changed if that’s okay with you.”

 

“No problem.”

 

The taller boy proceeds to open his wardrobe and grabs a pair of pyjama pants and a dark grey, old-looking hoodie, along with a T-shirt that looks worn out and a pair of boxers. “Here, you can have my T-shirt and boxers. Hope they’re not...too big for you,” he flashes a playful smirk as he hands the T-shirt and boxers to Junmyeon.

 

“At least I don’t have to bend down whenever I’m taking pics at a photobooth,” Junmyeon bites back. “Giant.”

 

“Whatever. I’m going to get changed into pyjamas now,” Chanyeol replies as he closes the bathroom door behind him.

 

When Chanyeol gets out of the bathroom, all Junmyeon sees is a fluffy, lost little boy in his pyjamas looking for his mother. And of course, he smiles. Out of all the reaction he can give, Kim Junmyeon decides to smile. What an idiot.

 

“What?”

 

“Nothing...just…” Junmyeon scratches his head. “I was just thinking about...uh...this semester. Yeah. This semester’s looking really...fun.”

 

“Wish I could say the same,” the giant sighs as he flops down next to Junmyeon on the bed, staring at the smaller boy with wide eyes as tears start to fall out. Again.

 

Junmyeon’s first reflex is to put his arm around the taller boy, patting him on the back. “Yeol, it’s okay. You’re going to be okay. This semester will be fun, I promise. You won’t get to hear that asshole lie to you again -”

 

“He lied to me!” Chanyeol shouts. “Everything we’ve been through for the past few years, every word he said - everything is a lie!”

 

“Yeol…” Junmyeon sighs, brushing the other’s back. “It’s going to be okay.”

 

“He lied to me,” Chanyeol sobs even louder than before. “How could I be so fucking stupid? I knew he’s been playing around since two months ago, but I didn’t want to believe my own instincts and then I saw him kissing fucking Luhan!”

 

His sobs grow louder than before as he leans his head on Junmyeon’s shoulder, his hands clinging on Junmyeon’s shirt for support. Junmyeon wraps his arms around Chanyeol, letting his tears fall on his old T-shirt. “Some guys are just players, Chanyeol. But one day, you’ll find that one guy who won’t let you down. Someone who’s the total opposite of Kris. Someone who...deserves you.”

 

Kris doesn’t deserve Chanyeol. Cheaters don’t deserve Park Chanyeol. Junmyeon is sure of that.

 

“Myeonnie?”

 

“Yes?”

 

Chanyeol looks up at Junmyeon’s face, his cheeks still flushed and wet with tears. It really, really takes all of Junmyeon not to squish them right now. “I’m sorry for being a crybaby.”

 

“It’s fine, Yeol,” Junmyeon reassures him, his hand patting the giant’s back once again. “You just saw your ex make out with a weeb with a pixie’s face.”

 

“I wanted to laugh but that’s just mean,” Chanyeol frowns.

 

“Hey, at least that was funny.”

 

Junmyeon’s used to making jokes people don’t laugh at. It’s either a dad joke or a dark joke everyone finds to be too mean to laugh at.

 

“Well, that cheered me up a bit,” Chanyeol’s frown turns into a soft smile. “At least I’m good looking.”

 

“...That’s true! Don’t worry, you’ll find another guy with that...face of yours. Anyway, it’s getting late. You should get some rest.”

 

Chanyeol can’t help but laugh at how awkward the tiny-looking boy is. Choir lead singer, club president, and he’s still so awkward sometimes. “Alright.”

“I’ll sleep on the sofa, if you don’t mind.”

 

“You can have Yesung’s room. He won’t be back until 3 in the afternoon tomorrow.”

 

_ Sweet,  _ Junmyeon thinks to himself. “Okay. Good night, Yeol.”

 

“Night,” Chanyeol replies as he pulls the covers up, wrapping his big body warm. To Junmyeon’s surprise, it’s…

 

A Zootopia blanket.

 

Junmyeon is so not judging him right now.

 

When Junmyeon wakes up on Yesung’s bed (not in the situation he’d always imagined it to be) the next morning, the first thing he notices is how the walls are covered in old movie posters - Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, Pulp Fiction, Poltergeist, Edward Scissorhands, you name it (as opposed to Chanyeol’s bedroom walls, decorated with all these band and Marvel posters). He’s as much of an art hoe as Junmyeon thought.

 

“Take everything and leave!” he hears a deep voice shout, muffled by the closed door near him.

 

“You don’t wanna give me a goodbye kiss?” another voice calls out, laced in a thick Canadian accent.

 

“Why would I? Go ask Luhan for a kiss.””

 

“Luhan was just a one time thing, babe, I swear -”

 

“Is that what you told him too? ‘Chanyeol was just a one time thing’? Fuck you, Wu Yi Fan.”

 

“Oh, come on, man. That was one time! I was drunk last night. I didn’t come home because I was shitfaced and I had to get fucking Kyungsoo, that loser, who just got home from another loser Choi Minho’s party to drive me home -”

 

“Excuse me, did you just call both Kyungsoo and Minho losers?” Junmyeon steps out.

 

“And who the fuck do you think you are?” Kris spits out. “You club presidents never stay out of people’s business! Did you fuck Chanyeol last night like the slut your pretty friend Minho is? Were you the one who told him I cheated on him because that’s bullshit, I was just drunk and -”

 

A flying punch goes to the tall man’s mouth, earning a yell from Kris and a shocked expression on Chanyeol’s face. “Shut up and leave Chanyeol alone.”

 

“God, that hurt!” Kris screams. “Motherfucker!”

 

“Leave now or I’ll throw another one at you.”

 

The Chinese-Canadian sprints away from the apartment with his luggage, grumbling and muttering “motherfucker” on his way out. Chanyeol is still staring at the smaller boy in shock, not knowing what to say. The gentle-looking guy can be a brute too sometimes, especially when it comes to protecting his friends.

 

“You really didn’t have to do that,” Chanyeol puts a hand on Junmyeon’s shoulder.

 

“I had to. He wouldn’t leave you alone and he needed to shut up. I can’t stand him slandering my friends like that. Kyungsoo and Minho are cool.”

 

“I don’t know Minho that well...but Kyungsoo? He’s the best,” Chanyeol nods.

 

*

 

Do Kyungsoo.

 

A member of the university choir, an accounting student, and...an aspiring R&B singer. Just like Junmyeon minus the serial heartbreaker and club president part. He’s also the odd one out of the Do-Byun-Kim household. What with Jongin’s habit of sleeping in all day long and acing all his classes (and doing all those weird dance moves he learned from YouTube) and Baekhyun’s popularity at uni, rivaling that of popular, to-die-for final year med student Lee Donghae’s.

 

Chanyeol met him at the choir audition - when they started talking about nonsense and exchanged contact info. Kyungsoo was sorted into tenor and Chanyeol, being a baritone, was sorted into bass. They started meeting outside of choir practice to write and cover songs together, sometimes harmonising, sometimes with Kyungsoo singing and Chanyeol playing the guitar. The two became best friends in no time. Chanyeol left the choir after a few months to focus on his band, yet the two still met time after time to talk about music and their daily life over coffee.

 

With his housemates, though, Kyungsoo has never experienced that kind of interaction.

 

Or an “oh, we’re meant to be best friends”.

 

His housemates hide things from him all the time. Such as the fact that they’re both gay (well, at least Baekhyun used to. Ever since he went public with Yixing, he’s outed himself to Kyungsoo).

 

“You should’ve stayed for the party last night, Soo,” Jongin chuckles. “It was lit!”

 

“I don’t consider Chanyeol getting fucked over as ‘lit’, but okay,” Kyungsoo deadpans, pressing the remote control button.

 

“No, not that. I feel sorry for him too,” Jongin sighs. “Sehun brought thirty people over. Thirty. On his own. Including Junmyeon...ugh…”

 

“What’s so ugh about Junmyeon? He’s alright.”

 

Kyungsoo hears a scoff. Baekhyun steps out of his room, all dressed up in a leather jacket, a Supreme T-shirt, and a pair of tight jeans, pretty eyes decorated with eyeliner, his face filled with anger. “Did I just hear you call Kim Junmyeon ‘alright’? Hm.”

 

“What?”

 

Baekhyun ruffles his platinum blonde hair in distress. “That. Bitch. Is. Dead. To. Me. Anyway, don’t mention that fucker’s name in front of me. I’ve got a dick appointment tonight, man.”

 

“With Yixing?”   
  


Baekhyun shakes his head. “Sadly, no. He’s busy with Chanyeol’s music thing.”

 

“With whom, then?” Jongin smirks.

 

“Don’t freak out,” Baekhyun winks. “Kim. Fucking. Jongdae. Maaaan. Yixing’s completely cool with it, as usual. Until he can get over Junmyeon, he’s giving me the permission to fuck around.”

 

“Jongdae? No shit!” Jongin yells in awe. “How did you even -”

 

Baekhyun shrugs. “I matched with him on Tinder and he straight up asked me if I wanted to meet him at this hotel tonight. Apparently his roommate’s parents came over.”

 

“Good luck!”

 

Baekhyun smiles to himself as he walks out of the house and hops on the next bus to the city. The ride to the hotel doesn’t take long, and Baekhyun finds himself fantasizing about Jongdae. Jongdae isn’t Yixing, but since Yixing won’t be there tonight, Baekhyun might as well enjoy the night at the hotel with the Tinder master. The hotel looks a bit luxurious, though not as luxurious as a top notch hotel. Decent enough for Baekhyun to stay in. He makes his way to the lobby as he calls up Jongdae.

 

“Hello?” a rather high-pitched male voice answers.

 

“Jongdae, this is Baekhyun. I’m at the lobby.”

 

“Okay, I’ll go get you now.”

 

Not long after the call, a skinny man of average height (if not, a bit short) walks out of the elevator and waves his hand at Baekhyun. He has a crooked smile painted on his face and a welcoming look in his eyes. He takes Baekhyun’s hand without a word and leads him upstairs as the other smiles at him.

 

Baekhyun can feel his tiny body being thrown onto the white sheets, Jongdae’s hands on his shoulders, those dark brown eyes staring into his soul. His crooked smile hasn’t left his face - it’s rather bigger now, as he unbuttons his jeans and takes his T-shirt off, throwing it on the floor. Baekhyun has to admit, the way Jongdae takes his T-shirt off and throws it away is so. Fucking. Hot.

 

He can feel himself rising...harder and harder…

 

“Fuck...faster you fucking tease,” Baekhyun grunts as Jongdae grips on his hips, planting hickeys here and there on Baekhyun’s neck with his teeth.

 

Without saying even a single word, Jongdae proceeds to thrust with all his might, making the other boy sweat and scream in glee. Burnt with passion, Jongdae sinks his lips on the milky white skin as he thrusts again and again, much to Baekhyun’s pleasure. Baekhyun wants to scream. He wants to…

 

“God damn it, I’m about to come!”

 

But Jongdae shows him no mercy. He gives him more pleasure as he begins to move up and down, following a certain rhythm as he bends down and shoots himself up Baekhyun’s ass, biting once more into Baekhyun’s neck. Baekhyun lets out a long moan, closing his eyes, trying not to come while Jongdae’s still at it.  _ Not now, Byun Baekhyun...not now, you’re enjoying it and he’s enjoying it… _

 

Jongdae’s smile.

 

That sexy, sexy smile and how hard he’s thrusting at this moment. How he fits...perfectly. How he leaves Baekhyun panting.

 

“Jongdae, I’m seriously about to -”

 

“Oh, where are my manners?” Jongdae whispers. “Apologies, my dear. My name is Kim Jongdae, and you’d better scream it out loud when you come.”

 

“KIM JONGDAE!” Baekhyun yells out as it happens. “GOD, YOU’RE SO FUCKING RUDE!”

 

Now Baekhyun knows why everyone wants a shot at hooking up with Jongdae.

 

And that’s when they both hear it. Jongdae’s phone ringing. His first instinct is to pick it up, and that’s what he does. “Hello, who’s this?”

 

“Who are you and why did you have sex with my wife?”

 

“Sorry, sir, I can’t quite understand you, I don’t remember having sex with anyone married -”

 

“You had sex with my wife!”

 

Jongdae scratches his head, laughing. “Uh -”

 

“I know you’re one of her students and she’s been having an affair with you, but she keeps denying it!”

 

“I didn’t have sex with anyone’s wife, Sir,” Jongdae cackles. “Also, this isn’t April Fools. See ya.”

 

“Wow, what was that all about?” Baekhyun asks.

 

Jongdae shakes his head. “Some professor’s husband. I slept with his wife. Ah wae, why can’t I just get straight As in peace?”

 

“You’re already really smart from what I heard, why do you have to sleep with professors to ace classes?”

 

“For fun. And to make sure I ace them all.”

 

Just when Jongdae is about to get back on his bed, his phone rings once again. “Yeah? ‘Sup, Junmyeon?”

 

Baekhyun feels his temper rising once again. No, not that name again. Not Kim Junmyeon again.

 

“Huh? A music project? With Chanyeol and Yixing? Okay, so you won’t show up at choir practice tomorrow. Okay, Junmyeon. Bye.”

 

Yixing and Junmyeon. Doing a music project together. Baekhyun wants to jump off a cliff. Or better yet, he wants to throw Junmyeon off a cliff.

 

“Uh, Jongdae, it was nice doing all this stuff with you but...I gotta go,” Baekhyun mumbles. “I have...an assignment to do.”

 

“Oh, okay. Glad you enjoyed it. Good luck with your assignment!”

 

“Bye, Jongdae.”

 

Baekhyun stomps away angrily, making his way to the stairs. He just can’t bother to wait for the elevator. He just wants to go home right now. He hates everyone and everything, especially a certain someone named Kim Junmyeon for fucking his life up. Why can’t he just go away for once? Why, why why?

 

A clash and a thud and Baekhyun rolls off to the floor screaming in pain. It doesn’t hurt that much, but his scream is partly because of the thoughts in his head.

 

As he gets up, he looks up at the eyes looking at him. The people laughing at the “weird Asian guy”.

 

“You’re going to pay, Kim Junmyeon,” he grumbles as he walks out of the hotel.


	4. Four

When Junmyeon gets home from his lectures that day, he does not expect to see a fluffy black poodle running around his living room. He doesn’t expect to see a familiar, very tall figure sitting next to Minseok (and Kyungsoo - but Junmyeon did expect him to come over since he said he was coming over after class) on the sofa, laughing at whatever they’re watching on TV.

  
“Oh, hi Junmyeon,” Chanyeol grins, looking up from his laptop. “We’re just working on an assignment. Come, sit.”

  
“We? You mean you,” Minseok retorts. “Kyungsoo and I are stuck with this movie Chanyeol picked for us.”

  
“What movie?” Junmyeon asks.

  
“Zootopia,” Chanyeol still has that wide smile on his face. _Goddamnit, why is he so adorable?_

  
Junmyeon sits down next to Chanyeol, who automatically leans on the smaller boy’s body without a warning. Whatever, this feels nice. Junmyeon doesn’t even know how he’s gotten so comfortable with the guy he just met at Yesung’s coffee shop. All he knows is that he has this weird instinct towards the other.

  
How did he even open up so easily to Chanyeol? About his only hobby - singing?

  
When did Chanyeol get so protective over him? The boy even stopped Junmyeon from tripping over bottle cracks at Baekhyun’s party.

  
“I brought him here,” Kyungsoo smiles a grin.

  
Does that mean they’re rehearsing at Junmyeon’s house today? Good God.

Does that mean Yixing is going to...

  
“Oh, shit,” Junmyeon exclaims. “Soo -”

“What?” the bald boy shrugs. “I thought it’d be nice if we could have a get-together at your place once in a while. Plus I needed to get out of Baekhyun and Jongin’s cloud for a while.”

  
“We have a rehearsal tonight…” Junmyeon mutters. “With Yixing…”

  
“Oh, sorry, I didn’t know that,” Kyungsoo bites his tongue. “Chanyeol didn’t tell me you guys had a rehearsal for your music project tonight.”

  
“He’s coming here,” Chanyeol interrupts.

  
_NO_! “Holy shit,” Junmyeon exclaims under his breath. “Yeol, you didn’t just…”

  
The wide-eyed boy looks at him in innocence, wondering what’s wrong with bringing Yixing to Junmyeon’s place.

  
“Guys, I think I’m gonna need some fresh air,” Junmyeon sighs, walking to the door. “Don’t follow me.”

  
Junmyeon shuts the door behind him and stands by the balcony, breathing in and out. He hates it everytime he gets reminded of what Yixing and he used to be. All the times Yixing spent at his apartment. How Yixing made him feel special and like nothing at the same time. How Yixing made him unable to love anyone (but Irene at one point). How it was possible for one man to destroy another’s conscience.

  
He exhales as he looks at the clouds above him. Yixing was the one who told him his voice sounded like the heavens above, like a choir of angels singing their glorious songs. But Yixing was also the one telling him to stop dreaming so much and focus on what’s right in front of him.

  
“You okay, Myeonnie?”

  
Junmyeon turns his back to see Chanyeol, with his hand on the tiny man’s shoulder. The look on his face is a concerned one.

  
“Oh, hey Yeol,” Junmyeon smiles. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just needed to get out of that room before I could explode. Don’t worry about me.”

  
“You don’t seem okay, though. Wanna talk about it?”

  
“Yixing and I used to date.”

  
The look on Chanyeol face becomes more apparent as Junmyeon utters those words.

  
“Oh. I didn’t know. I’m sorry, Myeonnie.”

  
“It’s okay. Really.”

  
“But you’re okay with him now, right?”

  
Junmyeon bites his lip. “It wasn’t exactly a civil breakup but we’ve both come to terms that it’s never going to work out. He still tries to keep in touch with me from time to time but most of the time I just ignore him.”

  
“I got the impression that something was going on between you two but…”

  
“Nothing’s going on between us. Not anymore.”

  
Chanyeol sighs. “I thought you guys were cool with each other but...you know…”

  
“I know. He’s not over me. I’m over him, though. Besides it’s not like he’d come up to you and tell you I’m his ex and he’s still not over me. It’s okay, Yeol. I’ll try to be professional and push this ex thing aside.”

  
“Okay,” Chanyeol nods, eyes gleaming with happiness. “We’ll practice at my studio next week then. Do you wanna stay here for a while or -“

  
“I’ll come in now,” Junmyeon follows the taller boy inside.

  
All eyes are on Junmyeon now. Minseok’s confused stare and Kyungsoo’s sharp yet dull stare begin to startle Junmyeon, who decides to sit down next to Chanyeol and say nothing. All the stares die down after a while - all but one. Chanyeol’s eyes are still on Junmyeon.

  
Even after they finish the movie, Chanyeol’s gaze is still on Junmyeon. Not that Junmyeon minds.

  
Those big, innocent-looking, almost almond-shaped eyes are always more than welcome to stare right into his soul.

  
*

  
“Hyung, I don’t think this is a good idea,” Sehun sighs, taking his cap off, revealing his luscious black hair.

  
“May I ask why?” the platinum blonde hisses. “That bitch took everything away from me. I won’t let him take my boyfriend away from me too!”

  
“It’s unnecessary. He’s over Yixing anyway. Yixing’s the one who’s chasing him around -“

  
Baekhyun shakes his head. “I’m calling it bullshit, Sehun. Yixing loves me. Yes, he’s not 100% over Junmyeon, but I’m sure Junmyeon plays a part in that as well.”

  
“Right.”

  
“Ready, guys?”

  
Both Jongin and Sehun nod. Baekhyun gives his phone camera his best smirk as he goes live on Instagram and greets his 3000 followers - mostly from his uni and some back from Bucheon. “Hi guys, I’m Byun Baekhyun but of course you already know that!” he shouts in a high pitched voice, waving at his phone camera. “Today, Jongin, Sehun, and I will talk about...an important issue.”

  
“Ooo, what’s that, Baek?” Jongin fake-glares.

  
“You know when you have the best boyfriend in the world - hot, a good dancer, smart, and nice - basically just perfect - and everyone wants to steal him from you?”

  
Both Jongin and Sehun fake-gasp.

  
“Yeah, totally relatable,” Baekhyun smirks. “Some people just don’t know when to back off, it seems. Hm. Shame, shame, shame. Anyway, I’m going to introduce y’all to the hoes who tried to steal my man…and failed. My homewreckers.”

The taller boys clap, followed by a “woohoo” from Jongin.

  
“Let’s start with Homewrecker No.1...drum roll please…”

  
“I wonder who it is,” Jongin laughs.

  
“Kim. Junmyeon.”

  
*

  
Chanyeol can’t believe it.

  
Did Baekhyun just mention Junmyeon’s name on his Instagram live? Junmyeon, Yixing’s ex, stealing Baekhyun away from Yixing? Junmyeon, Homewrecker No. 1?

  
“He and Yixing go wayyyy back,” Baekhyun drawls. “Way, way back. Bitch dumped my man and now he’s suddenly out to get him. Well, who isn’t out to get Yixing anyway?”

  
“Not me,” Sehun mutters.

  
“Good. Don’t be a homewrecker, Sehun, you know that’s a bad thing to do.”

  
Chanyeol can’t watch any more of the live. He’s had enough.

  
“Goddamn it!”

  
“What’s wrong?”

  
He turns to look at Yesung, who has just arrived home from whatever weird activity he was involved in earlier this morning. “Is this about Kris again? Or…”

  
“Something’s wrong with me,” Chanyeol sighs, flopping back into the sofa. “I think I’m going crazy. I just saw an Instagram live in which some popular guy from our uni exposes everyone who’s out to steal his boyfriend from him.”

  
“You mean byunbaek?”

  
“Yeah, him.”

  
Yesung sits next to Chanyeol, patting the other’s shoulder. “I know it must be hard for you since someone just stole Kris away from you -“

  
“Kris did it himself. It’s just that...he mentioned someone in particular and I...I don’t know why but I’m a bit…”

  
“It’s Junmyeon isn’t it?”

  
“Huh?”

  
Yesung laughs. “Don’t think I didn’t know you’re crushing really hard on him.”

  
“I’m not. I just got out of a relationship.”

“You’re blushing.”

  
“It just...doesn’t add up…I just fell out of love with someone else…”

  
Yesung shakes his head. “You fell out of love a long time ago. A long, long time ago. The spark died out a year into the relationship. It was Kris first, then you.”

  
“Then why does it still hurt?” Chanyeol breaks into sobs. “Why does the fact that Kris doesn’t love me anymore hurt so much?”

  
“Because you trusted him and he betrayed your trust. Of course it hurts.”  
Yesung takes the bigger boy into his arms and rubs circles around his back as the tears start to fall again. This is his first time seeing the usually cheerful, loud giant so hurt and vulnerable. But he knows - beneath that happy sunshine facade is a fragile heart.

  
“Even if what you said was true, I don’t know if I could trust Junmyeon or not,” Chanyeol sobs. “I mean, he’s a homewrecker. What if he’s the same as Kris?”

  
“If he’s the same as Kris, then fuck him. But no, I don’t get cheater vibes from that guy. He may seem like this rich kid who has it all but he doesn’t seem like a cheater or a homewrecker to me.”

  
“But...the byunbaek Insta live…”

  
“Baekhyun’s probably just fishing out for attention, as usual,” Yesung lets out a big sigh. “What can you expect from the Queen Bitch?”

  
“But what if he’s right...what if Junmyeon is a homewrecker…”

“Well...I don’t know about that. Ask him yourself. Oh wait, he just texted you.”

  
>Kim Junmyeon: hey

  
“Are you gonna answer him or not?” asks Yesung.

  
Chanyeol stays still as he wipes his nose and puts on his hoodie, cap, and sneakers.

  
“Where are you going?”

  
“Bowling,” says the taller boy. “Catch you later.”

  
Yesung shrugs as Chanyeol closes the door behind him. He knows Chanyeol just needs a release from all the stress - and bowling seems like a good idea right now, what with all the breakup, the assignments, and the music project he’s got going on. Chanyeol never lets himself rest, and Yesung’s used to that.

  
When Chanyeol arrives, he sees Sehun and Kyungsoo at the corner, having what seems to be a serious conversation...on the latest Marvel movie. He decides to pretend not to see them and go for a strike instead.

  
A group of girls start chattering loudly in a thick Singaporean accent as Chanyeol makes his first strike - and his next strikes. Chanyeol knows he’s good at this - he knows he looks good when he’s bowling as well.

  
“Wow, he so fine sia!”

“I think he’s cute. Maybe we should ask him how to teach us lah.”

Chanyeol chuckles, leaving the lane before the girls could come up to him. He walks up to Sehun and Kyungsoo, both staring at him in awe.

  
“I didn’t know you were good at bowling,” says Sehun.

  
“Well, he used to suck big time,” Kyungsoo mutters, laughing. “Like Junmyeon over there. Taking up bowling to impress the girls or something.”

  
“Oh, Junmyeon’s here…?”

  
“Yeah,” Kyungsoo chuckles. “We’re here to accompany him. It’s not like we’re bowling too.”

  
“Oh.”

  
“Sup, Yeol,” a familiar voice calls out as Junmyeon puts a hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder. “You didn’t reply to my text so I didn’t get the chance to ask you to come along.”

  
“Oh...I was busy.”

  
“Still busy with your assignments?”

  
Chanyeol nods.

  
“That’s too bad. I was about to ask if you wanted to watch Black Panther with me tonight.”

  
“I’ll pass. I’m still not done with my music theory essay,” Chanyeol lies.

  
“Uh, okay then.”

  
“I should be going right now. I need to work on my essay. See ya.”

  
“See ya. Good luck with your assignments!”

  
Junmyeon can only stare as Chanyeol leaves the bowling alley. He really came all the way just to make a few strikes and leave.

  
“Busy guy,” Junmyeon remarks. “What’s up with him today, though? He seems a bit quiet.”

  
“He’s probably tired. You can see it from his face. Besides, remember when I brought him over to your place? He was doing his assignment while Minseok and I were stuck with Zootopia.”

“He looks a bit shaky. And mad. Do you think he’s mad at me, Soo?”

Kyungsoo looks at the lane in front of him a bit before taking another glance at Junmyeon. “No, I don’t think so. Why would he be mad at you? Even if you actually did something, Chanyeol’s not the type to get mad over small stuff.”

  
“And he’d tell you if he’s mad at me.”

  
“True. You could try texting him if you’re THAT worried about him. Just a suggestion.”

  
The rest of the night feels empty for Junmyeon. With the lack of texts from Chanyeol and the boy running out on him earlier that afternoon, Junmyeon can’t help but wonder if something was wrong.  
Maybe Kyungsoo’s right. Junmyeon sighs to himself as he pulls his phone out.

  
>Kim Junmyeon: still busy with assignments?  
>Kim Junmyeon: I was thinking we could go to the new Japanese restaurant at the city for lunch tomorrow  
>Kim Junmyeon: if you’re ok with that, that is

  
Thirty minutes and still no reply.

  
>Kim Junmyeon: busy with assignments, I see. That’s ok. Good luck!  
>Kim Junmyeon: don’t forget to get some rest! Don’t stay up late ;)

  
“Yo hyung, aren’t we watching Black Panther tonight? Since Chanyeol hyung’s busy,” Sehun’s head pops in.

  
“Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Let me just get my wallet and phone.”

  
It’s a weird night for the Kim-Oh household since Minseok is free. He’s always been busy ever since he got into med school, and tonight, for the first time in forever, he has time to watch a movie with his dongsaengs. Nevertheless, he seems to be enjoying the movie. Even if he’s not the biggest Marvel fan out there.

  
“Wow, no wonder Kyungsoo really recommended this,” Sehun blurts out when the credit scene rolls. “It’s THAT good.”

  
“Yeah, I guess,” Junmyeon responds, fishing into his pocket for his phone. His face falls.

  
“What’s wrong?” Minseok asks.

  
“Chanyeol’s still not replying to your texts?” Sehun cuts in.

  
“Well...seems like he’s really busy,” Junmyeon puts his phone back into his pocket, sighing. “Fuck.”

  
Junmyeon waits and waits.

  
He lies awake that night with his phone in his hand. Yet every time it beeps, a certain name he’s been waiting for never shows up. No Park Chanyeol. Just tons of messages from his mom, Yixing, Kyungsoo, Minho, Jiyong, Yoona, and Taeyeon.

  
Junmyeon lets out a loud sigh before he’s engulfed in deep sleep.

  
When he wakes up the next morning, Chanyeol is the first thing to come up in his mind. As he hears a beep from his phone, he looks at the screen just to get ready to scroll through the messages awaiting him.

  
At the top, lies a message from Park Chanyeol.

  
>Park Chanyeol: Hi Junmyeon. This is Jongwoon, Chanyeol’s flatmate but you can call me Yesung. Chanyeol can’t make it for lunch today as he’s sick right now. He hasn’t slept for days working on his assignments. Stupid boy always does this to himself. Sorry about this kkkkkkk  
>Kim Junmyeon: oh, that’s too bad. Is he ok?  
>Park Chanyeol: He’s okay. Just a really bad flu, I think. He’ll recover in no time.  
>Kim Junmyeon: why are you answering his texts tho…  
>Park Chanyeol: He’s knocked out from all the Panadol I gave him. Either that or from the fever.  
>Kim Junmyeon: poor guy  
>Park Chanyeol: You should’ve seen him this morning. It was horrible.  
>Kim Junmyeon: can I come over and see him?  
>Park Chanyeol: Sure. I need to go to class in an hour so you’d better be quick. Here’s my number if you need anything: 04xxxxxxx. Xo

  
Junmyeon puts his phone down as he hurries up to the bathroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooh did something happen to chanyeol? Is he really mad at junmyeonnie? Hehehehehe.


	5. Five

It’s a quiet morning for Yesung. Last night was a chaos with Chanyeol playing music all night long without stopping. Yesung can’t count how many nights Chanyeol has been restless, working on his assignments and his music until ungodly hours.

  
Surprisingly though, this time, the house is silent at five AM. Yesung always wakes up at five, believing it’s healthier for his body that way. He sees Chanyeol’s bedroom door wide open - with no Chanyeol inside.

  
He’s probably in the studio, Yesung walks upstairs. He doesn’t expect to see Chanyeol laying his head on the table next to his laptop. He can hear the other whimpering. Even worse, he’s shivering.

  
“Yeol?”

  
“Huh?”

  
“Chanyeol, are you okay?”

  
Yesung lifts up Chanyeol’s head to see the other with dark circles around his eyes, his cheeks flushed.

  
“Junmyeon? Is that you?” Chanyeol falls into Yesung’s arms. His skin feels very warm to the touch.

  
“It’s me, Yesung. Are you sick?” Yesung lifts up a palm against the other’s forehead. _Shit, it’s like a furnace in there._ “You definitely have a fever.”

  
Before he knows it, the taller boy bends forwards and there’s vomit all over his clothes.

  
“Sorry,” Chanyeol whispers, his body shaking uncontrollably.

  
“Let’s get you to bed. I’ll take a shower first then get you some ice and Panadol so you can sleep.”

  
Chanyeol shakes his head weakly. “I have to stay here. And compose.”

  
“Compose what exactly?” Yesung sighs. “You’re sick, Yeol. You should rest. Look at you, you can barely keep yourself awake.”

  
“But what about my music?”

  
“Let’s get you to bed first.”

  
After stuffing the taller boy with medicine and water and wrapping him in blankets - a task very hard to complete for Yesung as Chanyeol keeps resisting and asking for Junmyeon instead, Yesung makes his way to the bathroom. _What if I text Junmyeon and ask him to come over and take care of Chanyeol? That could work._

*

  
“Hello, anybody home?”

  
Junmyeon knocks fervently. He needs to see how Chanyeol is doing. He needs to see if Chanyeol’s okay.

  
“Who’s that?” a croaky deep voice answers before breaking into a coughing fit.

  
“It’s me, Junmyeon.”

  
Chanyeol opens the door, still shivering and wrapped up in blankets from head to toe, with only his flushed red face revealed, like a giant burrito, his eyes watery, puffy, and bloodshot, looking as if he was in a trance. His hair is all messed up, strands of black sticking out everywhere, but Junmyeon thinks he still looks adorable.

  
“I heard you were sick so I decided to come over. Are you okay?”

  
“No,” Chanyeol mumbles, closing his eyes as he leans forwards and launches himself into Junmyeon’s body.

“Junmyeon…”

  
“Huh?”

  
“I don’t wanna run away anymore.”

  
_What even is he talking about?_

  
The taller male looks like he’s about to topple over any time soon. Junmyeon safely guides him into his bedroom, removing his blankets and sweat-covered clothes and laying him in his bed. He can’t help but feel bad seeing the usually happy-go-lucky, smiling giant so weak and shaky.

  
“Not the blankets!” Chanyeol protests feebly, pouting in anger. “I’m freezing to death.”

  
“Shut up and let me take care of you before you actually fry your brains out to death.”

  
“Fine.”

  
Junmyeon gently helps Chanyeol change into clean white pyjamas before unfolding the duvet on the giant’s bed and putting it over Chanyeol’s body, tucking the sick boy warm. He grabs the thermometer on Chanyeol’s night stand (Yesung must’ve used it on Chanyeol that morning and left it there) and puts it in Chanyeol’s mouth.

  
“Shit, Yeol...how come you’re still up and around?” Junmyeon pulls the thermometer out. _40.6 degrees. How come he’s still talking?_

  
“Someone had to open the door,” Chanyeol mumbles, his eyes still closed.

  
“Wait here.”

  
_Poor, poor baby,_ Junmyeon thinks. _Even with all that strength in his body he still falls sick on assignment week._ He rummages through Chanyeol’s bathroom until he finds a face towel and a washbowl. He fills the washbowl with cool water and returns to Chanyeol’s bedroom, where the giant is lying helplessly under the duvet. Junmyeon dips the face towel wet and applies it on Chanyeol’s face and neck.

  
“Better?” asks Junmyeon, pressing the damp towel on Chanyeol’s extremely warm forehead and leaving it there.

  
“Thanks, Mom.”

 _  
Good God_. “I’m not your mom. It’s me, Junmyeon.”

  
“Yeah, I know.”

  
“Now I’m going to cook you some porridge -“

  
“Don’t leave me alone.”

  
_What is this? Yesterday he’s trying to avoid me now he’s so fucking clingy. It’s probably the fever talking but whatever._

  
“Chanyeol, you need to eat.”

  
“Stay,” the sick boy croaks, grabbing Junmyeon by the hand. “Come here.”

  
“Okay,” Junmyeon lets out a heavy sigh as he lies down next to a clingy Chanyeol. “Are you still cold?”

  
“Yeah, and my head hurts,” Chanyeol whimpers, snuggling up closer to the tiny man.

  
Junmyeon holds the taller boy’s body in his arms and begins to run his fingers softly through Chanyeol’s hair, massaging his hurting head. Once the other is asleep, Junmyeon sneaks out to cook him a bowl of porridge. Worry paints his face as he finishes cooking, scared that Chanyeol might wake up and find him gone from his bed.

  
*

  
“What is it that you want to talk about, hyung?”

  
Kyungsoo takes a bite of his fish, eyes still glaring at the younger as he munches on his food. Sehun, on the other hand, already knows he’s in for a long ride across Kyungsoo’s little lecture hall.

  
“I saw the Insta live.”

  
That’s it. Sehun’s dead to the hyungs and he knows it.

  
“Is there any explanation as to why you didn’t stop Baek from doing it and damaging Junmyeon’s reputation? Or why you stayed behind to do the live with him? Or why you didn’t warn Junmyeon about this?”

  
“I told Baek it was a bad idea,” Sehun sips his coffee. “He didn’t want to listen to me and he threatened to tell everyone I sucked Seungri hyung’s dick once if I didn’t want to do the live with him. He told me he’d come for Seungri hyung too.”

  
“Of course he wouldn’t listen to you! You should’ve done something about it, still. But you chose to stay there and show everyone your face while Baek talked about his ‘homewreckers’ who aren’t actually homewreckers!”

  
“Hyung, I -“

  
“Oh Sehun, I’m very disappointed in you. So is Minseok. Junmyeon too if he knew, but I’m sure he doesn’t have a fucking clue about what’s going on!”

  
“When is somebody going to tell him?”

  
Kyungsoo shrugs. “I just saw the live, so I’m telling him as soon as he gets out of Chanyeol’s house.”

  
“Chanyeol hyung? What’s he doing at Chanyeol hyung’s house?”

  
“Nursing the fucking beanstalk back to health. You noticed he was absent from your elective class today, didn’t you? Or were you too obsessed with the Bitch Gang to care?”

  
“Uh, I just remembered Chanyeol hyung texting me last night telling me he might skip class because he wasn’t feeling well and he had to work on his music project last night…also why is Junmyeon hyung suddenly taking care of him? Is there something going on that I’m not aware of?”

  
Kyungsoo shakes his head. “Whatever. Once Junmyeon gets home, I’m telling him. And I’ll cover for you. I’ll let him know you were forced to do the live with Baek. But just this time. There will be no next time. I’d appreciate it too if you stopped being Baek’s slave just to protect Seungri’s reputation when everyone already knows he’s a hoe.”

  
“You know I hang out with Baek. He’ll -“

  
“Damage your reputation too if you stop hanging with him?” Kyungsoo shakes his head in shame. “No, Sehun-ah. You’re smart, you’ve already become one of the top students of our uni’s IT department without even trying. You could’ve done great if you could just stop spending so much time with his Regina George ass and start hanging out with those who are on your level!”

  
“So you’re expecting me to hang out with Yesung hyung?”

  
“Yeah! At least he doesn’t accuse people of being a homewrecker on Instagram live.”

  
“But -“

  
“But what? No one gives a flying fuck how popular you are in college, Sehun-ah. Soon you’ll be looking for jobs and so will Baek. It won’t matter anymore whose parties you went to. I know you’re using Baek for connections since he’s a straight A student just like you and Jongin and his parents are super rich, but with his behaviour, he won’t survive at work. And he’ll take you down with him. And I won’t be there to clean up the mess if he does.”

  
“But hyung -“

  
With that Kyungsoo leaves Sehun almost choking on his coffee.

  
*

  
As Junmyeon turns his back to Chanyeol’s bed, he finds the other still asleep, beads of sweat forming on his flushed, tired-looking face. Even so, he still looks as handsome as he does when he’s healthy.

  
“Yeol, wake up. You need to eat,” Junmyeon says as he lifts the taller boy’s head up with his hand and lifts up the bowl of porridge to Chanyeol’s lap.

  
“I don’t need to eat. I need Junmyeon,” the taller boy mumbles, his eyes still closed.

  
“You need to eat so you can take your meds. Come on.”

  
And so Junmyeon ends up having to spoon-feed the giant. Junmyeon pries Chanyeol’s mouth open with his fingers and gives him a pill to swallow, before making him drink some water and replacing the now dry towel on his forehead with a newly wet one. And of course, carefully caressing his crown.

  
“Junmyeon,” Junmyeon hears a low croak. “I feel like I’m dying here.”

  
Junmyeon feels Chanyeol’s cold hand grabbing his as the taller boy stirs deliriously. “Want me to call a doctor?”

  
Chanyeol doesn’t answer.

  
*  
“So, Mr. Park here is your…flatmate?”

  
Yesung nods, looking at the young man sleeping on the bed covered in a blanket up to his neck. “Correct. What’s wrong with him, Doctor Lee?”

  
The young doctor smiles. “First of all, call me Donghae. I just finished the final year of my specialty training program, so I can’t be that much older than you. Your flatmate is currently dealing with a virus and I’m guessing exhaustion is the main culprit here. He’ll be fine, but he’ll need to rest until he gets better. Full bed rest for the next two days. No uni, no walking around. I’ve prescribed him some medications including antiviral medication for the virus and Paracetamol to lower the fever since his temperature went really high. He should be okay in a few days.”

  
“Thank you so much, Donghae,” Yesung replies - Junmyeon could swear he saw him wink at the doctor.

  
“No problem,” Donghae flashes Yesung another smile as he starts to pack up.

  
“Thanks for taking care of him earlier today,” Yesung gives Junmyeon a pat. “I was thinking of skipping my lecture since he looked so awful this morning. He mistook me for you and fell into my arms. He wouldn’t even let me take care of him. He kept asking for you.”

  
“What…”

  
“I’m not kidding, Junmyeon. He really did that.”

  
Junmyeon can’t process any of what Yesung just said. Chanyeol, sick in the studio, collapsing into Yesung’s arms and calling him Junmyeon? “I...I’m really confused. Why was he avoiding me at the bowling alley the other day then?”

  
“He thought he couldn’t trust you.”

  
Junmyeon lets out a big, big sigh. _What is this?_ “Why couldn’t he trust me? What the hell did I even do?”

  
Yesung puts a palm on the smaller boy’s knee. “He saw something he shouldn’t have seen. Don’t tell me you haven’t seen Byun Baekhyun’s Instagram live.”

  
“What Instagram live? I know Baekhyun hates me, but I don’t know which Insta live you’re talking about.”

  
Yesung unlocks his phone and clicks on his app icon, showing Junmyeon Baekhyun’s profile and clicking on one of his story highlights.

  
“Homewreckers?” Junmyeon squints his eyes. “What the hell is he talking about?”

  
“He’s an attention seeking brat. You know that.”

  
Junmyeon tsk-s. “I know, but why did he just mention my name? I’ve never wanted, even once, to steal Yixing away from him! I don’t want him back. Dating him was the most miserable seven months of my life, and I wouldn’t - ever - want to go back.”

  
“I understand,” Yesung gives him another pat on the back.

  
“But why is Chanyeol so upset about this? I mean, I’m pretty sure my friends have seen that live and they haven’t said a word about it to me.”

  
“That’s either because they know it’s not true and they don’t want the word to spread any further, or because they don’t think it’s a big deal.”

  
“But why is it such a big deal to Chanyeol to the point where he avoided me and ended up sick from having too many thoughts in his mind the next day?”

  
Yesung stands up, sighing as he makes his way to the door. “For someone so smart, you sure are slow. No offense. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go and ask a hot young doctor for his number.”

  
And so he leaves. Junmyeon knows he’s probably trying to ask Donghae out, and so he knows better than to leave Chanyeol alone and wait for his flatmate to get back. This is going to be a long night.

  
Junmyeon sits on Chanyeol’s bed and looks at the sick boy once again, this time knocked out from all the pills he’s been given instead of running around and making everyone laugh with his usual cheerful, mischievous behaviour. His lips are pale and shaky, yet Junmyeon still feels a desire to kiss them. But no, he’ll get sick too if he does.

  
The night falls down slowly as Junmyeon watches over Chanyeol, making sure he has all his needs met. Junmyeon can’t remember what time it is that his wakefulness gives up on him. Once he wakes up a couple of hours later, he puts his palm against the taller boy’s forehead, sighing with relief. Still warm but at least he’s not frying his brains out anymore.

  
“Hello,” a deep voice Junmyeon has come to know very well retorts as Chanyeol’s eyes flutter open, making Junmyeon almost fall off his seat.

  
“Hey. How are you feeling?”

  
“Better than yesterday,” Chanyeol chuckles as he stirs, his face now facing Junmyeon’s. “Still dizzy, though. But I think I’m strong enough to go upstairs -“

  
“No, you can’t,” Junmyeon interrupts. “The doctor put you on bed rest for the next two days. Besides, you’re still sick. You can’t risk it.”

  
Chanyeol pouts. “But our assignment with Yixing -“

  
“That can wait. I need you to get better first, Yeol.”

  
“You look really tired, by the way.”

  
“I’m okay,” Junmyeon lies. He knows he looks tired, and he is tired.

  
“Go home and get some sleep. You look like you haven’t had any sleep last night because of me.”

  
Junmyeon shakes his head. “I did sleep for at least three hours since you threw up in the middle of the night and your fever got really high at one point, but I’m fine. You’re the one who’s supposed to be sleeping.”

  
Suddenly, he feels a callous hand on his head gently pushing him down, fingers running through his hair. “Sleep.”

  
“Okay, if that’s what you want me to do.”

  
“By the way, Junmyeon?”

  
“Hm?”

  
Junmyeon can feel the hand on his head staying still and Chanyeol stirring to face him. He lifts his head up, and so their eyes meet.

  
“I like you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a bit long to update! Getting a bit busy with uni and my social entrepreneurship club and everything. And oooh looks like Junmyeon is figuring things out. And poor Yeolie :( I hate to see him suffer too guys dw


	6. Six

What did he just say?

  
“Chanyeol, I…”

  
“I like you, Junmyeon. I feel comfortable whenever I’m with you. More comfortable than I should be with anyone. You’re generous, smart, not to mention hot, and even though your jokes aren’t funny, I like hanging around you. I can’t get enough of you.”

  
“Uh…”

  
The taller male‘s smile turns into a frown.

  
“You’re joking, right? Or is this because you’re sick?” Junmyeon puts his palm against the other boy’s forehead for maybe the hundredth time that day. “You’re warm again. Maybe you should get some rest.”

  
“I’m being serious here,” Chanyeol insists, brushing Junmyeon’s palm off his head. “I really like you, Junmyeon.”

  
“I…”

  
“What?”

  
It feels as if Junmyeon’s lips can’t move anymore. As if all the words Junmyeon has ever known have been erased from his memory. As if Junmyeon forgets how to speak.

  
The words just won’t come out.

  
_No. This isn’t what I expected. What if he doesn’t like the real me? What happens when he finds out about my past as a serial dater? I mean the homewrecker thing wasn’t true but he was so pissed over that - what happens when he finds out about me dating people for fun and dumping them at the peak of our romance? What happens when we graduate and I move back to Korea to get a boring old management trainee job, and he stays here to work on his music? Our worlds are too different and I don’t know how to deal with this._

_  
What if one day he decides I’m too boring and he leaves me?_

  
“What is it?”

  
“I...I don’t know.”

  
“You don’t know? What the hell does that even mean?”

  
“I don’t know what to say. I’m just...uh...not ready for this…now if you’ll excuse me…”

  
Chanyeol throws his hands up in the air, refusing to believe what he just heard. “I poured my heart out to you, and this is what I get.”

  
“Chanyeol, no. It’s not what you think it is.”

  
“What do you mean it’s not what I think it is?” Chanyeol furrows his eyebrows in frustration. “Are you still not over Yixing? Is everything Baekhyun said true?”

  
“No!”

  
“Then why are you -“

  
Junmyeon regrets it. Why did he even shout? _The boy is sick, give him a break, Myeon._

“Sorry, I...I have issues, okay. I need to get myself together first before I can get into...a thing with you.”

  
“What issues?”

  
“I…”

  
“You don’t like me.”

  
Junmyeon wants to shout. He wants to scream “I like you and I’ve been wanting to ask you out ever since I saw you at Yesung’s cafe for the first time but I’m too busy for a real relationship and I’ll break your fucking heart - or you’ll break mine since you’re so good looking and you know it and everyone wants a piece of you and I don’t want any of us to get hurt!” but the words just won’t come out. They won’t.

  
“I...I like you too, but...Goddamn it, Chanyeol…”

  
“What are you trying to say? All I’m getting here is -“

  
“No...you don’t understand…”

  
“What is it that I don’t understand? You made it clear you’re rejecting me. Just say it. You don’t want me. It’s that easy, Junmyeon.”

  
“I do like you! It’s just…”

  
“At least give me a clear answer. I don’t like being hung up on.”

  
“I...I can’t do this. Not yet,” Junmyeon shakes his head, his fingers shaking as he stands up and walks towards the door. “I’m just not ready yet. I’m sorry, Chanyeol.”

  
“Wait! Junmyeon!”

  
When Chanyeol reaches the front door, the tinier male is nowhere to be seen.

  
“Chanyeol,” Yesung lets out a sigh. “What the hell are you doing? You should be in bed, resting.”

  
“He just...left. He didn’t even tell me why he can’t ‘do this’. Yesung hyung, what do I do now?”

  
“You didn’t want to believe he wasn’t a homewrecker, you avoided him, and now you’re stressing over him rejecting you,” Yesung laughs nervously. “Park Chanyeol, when will you ever start making sense?”

“When Junmyeon starts making sense, then I will start making sense.”

  
*

  
Commitment-phobia.

  
Junmyeon’s excuse for everything relationship-related.

  
Starting from Irene, to his last fling before Chanyeol. Junmyeon can’t even remember the last time he wanted to commit to someone. Everyone after Yixing and Irene had been nothing but a fling.

  
“How’s Chanyeol?” Minseok asks, passing the plate over to Jiyong.

  
“Still sick but he’s better now, I guess,” Junmyeon mutters. ”Long time no see, Jiyong. How have you been?”

  
“Same as always. You?” the shorter male asks, laying his red overcoat on the chair. “I’m guessing not too good by the look on your face.”

  
Junmyeon shrugs. “Well.”

  
“Well?” Minseok purses his lips.

  
“I fucked up. I fucked up real bad.”

  
“Tell us what happened.”

  
Junmyeon sits down. He remembers everything - how miserable Chanyeol looked, how messed up he was, how the words couldn’t come out of his mouth. How he felt so ready and so not ready at the same time. “Chanyeol...confessed to me.”

  
“Confessed? About what?”

  
“Uh…”

  
“Definitely not about where his parents got all that money to build him a mini studio from,” Jiyong sighs. “He likes you, doesn’t he?”

  
Junmyeon has no choice but to nod. “And I…”

  
“Did you say yes?” Minseok presses on.

“Of course you didn’t.”

  
“I didn’t.”

  
“But why? He’s everything your type. Everything you want in a lover. What does he lack?”

  
“Everyone likes him, okay? I can’t compete. Those girls at the bowling alley, have you seen them? Even Sehun used to have a crush on him. I know I’m physically attractive, but…I’m annoying and boring. My dad jokes suck, I only get invited to club exec parties, and I can’t do anything other than lead that damn economics club and sing at the choir. Him? Everyone knows who is, he gets invited to the best parties, he’s ridiculously handsome. He can easily get rid of me and run off with someone else more...I don’t know. Someone cooler.”

  
Minseok can’t help but shake his head.

“Junmyeon. You do know that he’s not the kind to just ditch someone and run off.”

  
“Well, he used to be,” Jiyong interrupts. “Until he met Kris Wu. He used to be the uni’s no. 1 fuckboy.”

  
“You know Park Chanyeol?” Junmyeon squints his eyes.

  
Jiyong nods. “Who doesn’t know him?”

  
“See? This is what I’m talking about. He’s popular and I’m...I’m just another ‘snobby’ club exec at uni with dad jokes. He’ll leave me for some popular girl or guy.”

  
“You’re a club exec. You’re cooler than he’ll ever be,” Jiyong laughs. “Come on. Chaerin - the president of the law society - is way cooler than Seungri, a popular dude whose dick gets sucked by freshmen all the time, y’all gotta admit that.”

  
“You’re just saying that because you’re dating Chaerin,” Junmyeon points out. “And Seungri used to chase the shit out of you and it scared you somehow.”

  
“Yeah, before he became a hoe.”

  
“Anyway,” Minseok cuts in. “Junmyeon, you’ll never know where this is gonna take you. If only you said yes…”

  
“I just don’t want to get hurt again, Minseok.”

  
*

  
Sehun always knows how to cheer up his hyungs. Be it going out to their favourite bar The Elyxion, going bowling, a concert, eating fish and chips, or even drinking soju at a random Korean restaurant in the city, Sehun always knows what his hyungs want.

  
But of course, he doesn’t know what Junmyeon wants at this point.

  
He goes home to see Junmyeon and Minseok on their laptops at the dining table. Both quieter than usual. Sehun flops into the sofa next to Junmyeon and clears his throat. “Hello?”

  
No answer. Junmyeon’s thumb looks busy swiping on his phone screen.

  
“Hyung, are you still mad at me?”

  
Junmyeon shakes his head, his eyes still on his phone screen.

  
“Hyung, are you going to talk to me or not?”

  
“Oh no, why did I swipe left on that Seulgi girl? She was hot!” Junmyeon sighs to himself. “Stupid Junmyeon.”

  
“Junmyeon hyung. Please. Talk to me.”

  
“Cho Kyuhyun...yes...bring it on,” Junmyeon laughs to himself as he swipes right. “God, he’s so hot.”

  
“He’s been like this since this morning,” Minseok puts his hand on Sehun’s shoulder. “Don’t mind him. After all, the way to cure pain is to add some more.”

  
“That’s some fucked up logic you have right there, Minseok hyung.”

  
Minseok shrugs. “That’s not my logic. If I were him I’d just go straight up to the guy I’ve been crushing on for months and tell him I like him.”

  
“Right, like that’s what you did to Jongdae,” Junmyeon scoffs.

  
“I. Do. Not. Have. A. Crush. On. Jongdae.”

  
“But you’re in love with him,” Junmyeon giggles, swiping right on another lucky person. “Oh. Yoona just asked me if I wanted to go to The Elyxion tomorrow.”

  
“I think you should, hyung,” Sehun replies - to which Junmyeon refuses to answer.

  
When Sehun finally has the time to visit his (lying low and recovering) hyung, he does so in a hurry. Junmyeon is probably there and he’s waiting for an explanation. Sehun knocks on the door to a seemingly agitated Yesung - and a young man behind him in a doctor’s coat.

  
“I’m here to see Chanyeol hyung.”

  
“He’s in his room.”

  
Sehun enters the spacious bedroom, grinning at the sight of Chanyeol sitting up on his bed propped by pillows with a laptop on his lap and a Rilakkuma doll next to him, placed neatly on the blanket covering his waist and legs. “Hi, Chanyeol hyung. Still on bed rest?”

  
“Yeah,” Chanyeol stretches his long arms. “I’m going back to uni tomorrow, though. Fuck this sickness. Yesung even got that doctor dude to watch over me so I wouldn’t get up from bed.”

  
“I heard from Kyungsoo hyung it was pretty bad. You’re okay now, right, hyung?”

  
Chanyeol nods. He remembers Kyungsoo coming over with his homemade soup after Junmyeon left. “Any art assignment I missed out on?”

  
“Fortunately we’re not given any assignment this week. Jeez, why am I even taking this elective?”

  
“Maybe because Jongin’s also doing it,” Chanyeol shrugs. “I don’t know how I’m going to work on the rest of my music project with Junmyeon…”

  
“What’s wrong with Junmyeon hyung?”

  
“He hasn’t been answering my texts ever since I told him I liked him.”

  
“You what?”

  
Chanyeol sighs, flopping down on his pillows. “I confessed to him.”

  
“Oh, so that’s why he doesn’t want to talk about you lately…”

  
Chanyeol nods. “He hasn’t told you about this, has he?”

  
“No one in that house told me anything. Just...Junmyeon not wanting to talk about you and suddenly hating the whole house and being addicted to dating apps for some reason. He’s going out with his friend to The Elyxion tomorrow and he didn’t invite me.”

  
“I have an idea,” Chanyeol’s eyes light up. “What if we give him a surprise?”

  
*

  
When Junmyeon enters The Elyxion, he expects to see everything but _Oh Sehun buying Irene a drink. This is just weird. He hates her...doesn’t he? And why is he even here?_

  
“We’re finally here,” Yoona smiles, showing Junmyeon her pearly whites.

  
“How long has it been since the last time we hung out?” Junmyeon grabs a hold of Yoona’s hand, making the female slightly blush. “Now let me buy you a drink.”

  
He guides Yoona to the bar, where his eyes meet Irene’s sharp gaze. No, not the ex again. Irene breaks the eye contact as she turns to Sehun and laughs at whatever Sehun just said. Whatever spell Irene put him on, she succeeded. Not in making Junmyeon jealous. But in making Junmyeon disgusted.

  
“Two Tequila Sunrise please,” Junmyeon cues.

  
“You always know just what to drink,” Yoona grins.

  
Junmyeon can’t help but laugh at her remark. “There’s a reason why I’m your number one drinking friend.”

  
“Number two. Second best next to Taeyeon.”

  
“Well, if you say so.”

  
Yoona takes a sip of her drink. “What have you been up to lately?”

  
“A lot. Been busy with uni and choir. And...hooking up.”

  
“I see.”

  
Junmyeon drinks more of his tequila, glancing at Sehun and Irene once more. Boy, are they having so much fun. Junmyeon has never seen Sehun fake-smile so much in his life. He realises how Sehun isn’t even willing to put his arm around Irene. How opposed he is to touching the girl.

  
What he doesn’t realise, is that Yoona has gone off to dance with Taeyeon, who is somehow already on the dancefloor.  
And that there is a certain someone behind him - Kim Jongdae with an arm slung around his shoulder. The arm appears to belong to a tall, lanky figure sipping his martini, dressed in a pair of black jeans and a black T-shirt underneath an unbuttoned red-and-grey flannel.

  
And that damn gorgeous black comma hair. Junmyeon’s seen him with his hair down (which makes him look like a kindergartener), pushed back, and messy with strands sticking out everywhere, but this?

  
At that moment, Junmyeon spits his drink as the tall man proceeds to give Jongdae a fiery kiss on the lips.  
And when he stops, he turns to look in Junmyeon’s direction.

  
_So hot._

  
“What the fuck, Park Chanyeol?”


	7. Seven

****All Junmyeon gets is the sight of Chanyeol - the same Chanyeol who helped him with his music assignment, the same Chanyeol who saved him from tripping over bottle cracks, the same Chanyeol who giggles over small things, the same Chanyeol who comforted him when he was scared of Yixing coming to his house, the same Chanyeol he took care of when he was sick - kissing Kim Jongdae, his biggest rival at the choir.

 

And he won’t stop until Taeyeon comes to their side with Yoona, a girl with medium length brown hair and a fairly tall young man with chubby cheeks, big eyes, and dark brown hair behind her back.

 

“Noona! Long time no see,” Chanyeol grins, giving Taeyeon and Yoona a big hug - a movement later followed by Jongdae, who excuses himself afterwards.

 

“Chanyeol-ah! How have you been? I heard you almost got hospitalised a few days ago,” Taeyeon gives the younger male a pat on his back. “Are you okay now?”

 

Chanyeol breaks into laughter. “Yeah. I could barely open my eyes and get out of bed but now I’m fine. How are you?”

 

“I’m great! Anyway, this is Kyuhyun and this is Seohyun. President and vice president of the postgraduate business association!”

 

 _Great,_ Junmyeon frowns. _Now he’s going to charm those two..who knows what will happen next. Life’s easy when you have good looks and a charming personality at the same time._

 

“Oh, hey, Junmyeon! I didn’t see you there,” Taeyeon waves. “Yoona, you’re such a bad friend for leaving him at the bar all by himself. What if someone kidnaps him?”

 

“He was literally begging to be left alone, unnie,” Yoona whines, laughing. “He was on his phone the whole time, talking to this guy on Tinder. He even forgot I was there.”

 

“That guy on Tinder happens to be me, actually,” the man called Kyuhyun smiles, earning a series of giggles from the girls...but not from Chanyeol, apparently. “Hi, Junmyeon. I’m Cho Kyuhyun. Nice to meet you.”

 

“Nice to meet you too, Kyuhyun hyung.”

 

“Call me Kyu,” Kyuhyun puts on his charming smile once more - an “I’ll buy you a drink” kind of smile, as he proceeds to buy Junmyeon a mixed glass of Jack Daniels’ honey and coke.

 

_He’s even hotter in real life. What did I do to deserve this?_

 

Junmyeon turns his back against Kyuhyun to face Chanyeol...making kissy faces at Seohyun. No. Junmyeon doesn’t like this.

 

“So,” Kyuhyun takes a sip of his Jack Daniels. “You sing?”

 

“Yeah. I’m okay at it, though. Not a professional singer or anything.”

 

“You’re a good singer though, I’ll give you that. I’ve been to one of your choir performances before. You’re a powerful lead singer.”

 

 _No way._ Everyone knows Kyuhyun is an acclaimed YouTube singer - his cover videos always get more than a thousand views and he’s been invited to sing at the undergrads’ graduation before. And he just complimented...Kim Junmyeon?

 

“Gosh. Thanks,” Junmyeon tries not to giggle. He knows he’s already blushing. _God damn it, Kim Junmyeon, don’t blush!_ “Wanna sing for me for a night?”

 

“Eh?”

 

Junmyeon looks into the taller man’s eyes. “You know what I mean.”

 

And there he is again. Park Chanyeol, dancing with Ailee from Junmyeon’s accounting class. _Why is she even here? I’ve never seen her outside of uni before._ His hand on her waist, everything is just...too much for Junmyeon. Maybe Jiyong is right after all. Maybe Chanyeol is a fuckboy. And Junmyeon knows fuckboys never change.

 

Because Junmyeon himself never did.

 

“What do you say, Kyuhyun?”

 

“I...don’t go straight into sex on the first date. But making out would be nice. Or, I don’t know. We could just dance. Or go somewhere else.”

 

“Okay, then. Wanna make out?”

 

“Definitely,” Kyuhyun growls, low and sexy as Junmyeon takes his hand and leads him to the nearest bathroom. He slams the taller male to the wall as he looks deeply into the attractive big, round eyes.

 

“You’re gonna be the one singing for me, Kyuhyun hyung,” Junmyeon whispers. “Sing my name out loud until everyone knows the story of how Kim Junmyeon marked his senior. But not today. Today’s reserved for...the appetizer. We’ll move on to the main course once I get to know you better.”

 

“Alright,” Kyuhyun smiles before Junmyeon smashes his lips into his and bangs him hard against the wall once more.

 

As their lips consume each other’s, Kyuhyun can feel himself giving into the smaller man’s touches and bangs. _Damn, he’s got stamina._ Junmyeon bites into Kyuhyun’s neck as he starts planting soft kisses here and there, ending it with another long, harsh smooch on the tall male’s lips.

 

“Fuck, Junmyeon. That was so hot,” Kyuhyun pants.

 

“It was,” Junmyeon nods, his arms still enveloping Kyuhyun’s head. “Out of one to ten, how would you rate your appetizer, dear Sir?”

 

Kyuhyun can’t help but fake a laugh. “Too corny!”

 

“Yeah, but. Just give me a number, will you?”

 

“Ten,” Kyuhyun whispers as Junmyeon takes his arms off the bigger guy. “Definitely a ten since you know how to kiss with so much...passion.”

 

 _It’s not passion, it’s anger,_ Junmyeon smirks to himself. _Thank you for this, Park Chanyeol._ “Right. Thanks. You mentioned you’re not only into hookups, though. You’re into...intellectual conversations, isn’t it?”

 

Kyuhyun chuckles. “Yes. But we can’t exactly have one in a nightclub, can we? I can barely hear you over the music.”

 

“Say, how ‘bout we grab dinner tomorrow? There’s this new fancy Italian restaurant in the city. I can pick you up at seven - that is, if you’re free.”

 

“Sure. I’m free after six tomorrow.”

 

“Cool. For now, let’s just dance like there’s no tomorrow.”

 

The two immerse themselves in the music, swaying their bodies to the noise as their lips touch once more. Junmyeon allows himself to look into the taller man’s eyes once more, realising the longing inside them. But no. Junmyeon can’t give in just yet. He lives by certain rules - making out and dating a person he just met is okay. But sex is another matter.

 

“I had so much fun today. Did you?” Kyuhyun asks, taking Junmyeon’s hand in his as they walk out of the nightclub. Junmyeon nods in agreement, grinning widely.

 

“Most definitely.”

 

“But before we go on tomorrow’s date, I’d like to get some things straight.”

 

“I think I know where this is heading. You know, Kyuhyun hyung. If you’re not okay with fucking on the first date, I’m okay with that.”

 

“I don’t go straight into that on the first date,” Kyuhyun lets go of the other’s hand. “It usually takes me two dates or three to decide whether I want to sleep with someone or not. You okay with that?”

 

Junmyeon nods. “That’s okay with me. I’ll wait as long as I have to.”

 

“You should know that my friend made me a Tinder account and I continued to use it for fun. I usually swipe right on people, get matches, and I end up ignoring them. But I didn’t end up ignoring you. There must be something special about you.”

 

“I guess so.”

 

“I don’t know what it is. Only time will tell what’s so special about you.”

 

“Yeah. Only time will tell.”

 

Kyuhyun puts on another meaningful smile. “Well. My cab’s here. Time to get home and doze off. See you tomorrow.”

 

“See you tomorrow, hyung.”

 

Kyuhyun waves as his cab drives him home. Junmyeon can’t help but smile wider than before, making his way back to the door to get Yoona. He can feel the cold night wind breeze on his face as he walks away from the cab pickup area and spots a familiar looking black car on the street in front of him, with an even more familiar figure walking in a hurry towards the car...just to stop in front of Junmyeon.

 

Both stop and stare, frozen.

 

Those eyes.

 

His black comma hair styled so perfectly, his face still a bit pale but beautiful under the moonlight, those big, dark eyes. Yet no words come out of his mouth as he continues to stare at Junmyeon.

 

It’s not like Junmyeon knows what to say either. But if there’s one thing he knows - he knows he can never forget how beautiful Chanyeol looks under the moonlight that night. How sad those eyes are, how his lips quiver when he gets into his car, shuts his door with full force, and drives away from Junmyeon’s sight.

 

_Maybe this is my cue to get Yoona and leave._

 

*

 

With a guitar on his lap and a bottle of whiskey sitting next to him, Chanyeol looks up at the moon. He’s been sitting on the patio for about an hour now and his flatmate is yet to notice. It’s better that way, he thinks. Let Yesung be busy with whatever he’s busy with and poor Chanyeol can vent his heartbreak out in peace. Let Yesung not know about whatever he’s going through.

 

If there’s one thing Chanyeol hates to do other than sitting around and doing nothing, it’s to burden others. Including the sweet Yesung who’s always been there to take care of him since day one. His one and only hyung. But Yesung somehow always knows when Chanyeol is sad or in need of comforting. Such as now.

 

“Chanyeol, are you okay?”

 

He feels a soft pat on his back. “I’ll be fine.”

 

Yesung shakes his head. “You’re not, and you sure as hell won’t be if you’re sitting here all alone drinking a bottle of whiskey and playing the guitar outside in the middle of the night. What happened?”

 

Chanyeol sighs, putting his acoustic guitar down. “He’s already dating another guy.”

 

“I’m sorry to hear that, Yeolie,” Yesung rubs circles on the taller boy’s back. “I thought you and Sehun had a plan to get him back, though?”

 

“We do have a plan. But it’s not working yet. It will work, but...it just...takes a lot of time.”

 

Another pat on the back. “Then you just gotta be patient, I guess. Besides, I’m sure he _does_ like you. He’s just traumatised by the idea of having a serious relationship.”

 

“You really think so?”

 

Yesung gives him a nod. “He’s done a lot to show how much he cares about you. He doesn’t like Baekhyun but he came with you to that party anyway.”

 

“Hmm,” Chanyeol nods back. “He let me cry on his shoulder all night long after fucking Yifan kissed Luhan right in front of me. No one’s ever comforted me the way he comforted me that night.”

 

“See?” Yesung smiles victoriously. “He goes out of his way to show he cares about you.”

 

“I just don’t get why he’s so scared of telling me he likes me back. And why he’s going around swiping right on random people on a dating app.”

 

“We can only assume why at this point. Come on, let’s get inside. You just got better. You don’t want to get yourself sick again, do you?”

 

“I got better because he took care of me. It’s all because of him,” Chanyeol mutters as he follows Yesung inside. “I know he thought I didn’t notice the things he did since I was paralysed by the virus, but I did.”

 

“He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t care about you, Yeol. Trust me on this.”

 

“He even spoon-fed me.”

 

Yesung nods once more. “I know. That’s why I said he truly cares about you. He truly, sincerely does care about you.”

 

“He’s the only person other than you and Kyungsoo who would’ve skipped a day of class to take care of me.”

 

“Just give him time, Yeol. He’ll come to you, sooner or later.”

 

Chanyeol smiles. “Time to put the rest of my plan into action.”

 

“Now that’s the spirit.”

 

*

 

“Yes, Eomma. Yes, I’ll continue to study hard and make you proud. Love you. Bye.”

 

Jongdae’s never been one to disappoint his mother. Ever since his father passed away in a car accident, Jongdae’s forgotten all about his childhood dream of becoming a singer. He’s been working hard to get himself out of high school and into a good university abroad. He chose to major in bioengineering so he could develop better technological equipment for hospitals; so lives could be saved before it’s too late - so there would be less unlucky car accident victims in the world.

 

He knows his father would be proud of him if only his road to success wasn’t paved by both hard work and sexual endeavours with professors. But he had to make sure he aced every class.

 

Jongdae sits down and relaxes to the beat of Dynamic Duo playing on his laptop. It’s his me time, and no one can disturb his peace. He’s studied enough for the day and he’s done with his part time job at the supermarket that day. Jongdae has decided it’s time for him to just enjoy the rest of the night.

 

However, this sense of bliss fades away once his phone buzzes with a couple of messages from a certain Park Chanyeol. “What the fuck -”

 

>Park Chanyeol: yo  
>Park Chanyeol: jongdae  
>Park Chanyeol: yo  
>Park Chanyeol: yo  
>Park Chanyeol: jongdaeeeeee   
>Park Chanyeol: hey  
>Park Chanyeol: minseok’s future husband   
>Kim Jongdae: what do u want   
>Kim Jongdae: whats minseoks number   
>Kim Jongdae: u promised!!   
>Park Chanyeol: can’t give you his number yet :(   
>Kim Jongdae: and why is that   
>Kim Jongdae: i thought we agreed   
>Park Chanyeol: do me another one SMALL favour   
>Park Chanyeol: and i’ll set u up on a date with minseok   
>Park Chanyeol: a REAL one   
>Kim Jongdae: ooh :3   
>Kim Jongdae: kkkkk ok then   
>Kim Jongdae: what do u want me to do   
>Kim Jongdae: nothing involving kissing u in public again pls   
>Park Chanyeol: i promise, you wont get to kiss me again   
>Kim Jongdae: cool cool   
>Kim Jongdae: so   
>Kim Jongdae: whats the plan captain?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trust chanyeol, y'all. also, i'm sorry if it's taking me a bit longer than usual to update this fic. uni has started again for me and life's been a bit hectic


	8. Eight

_Beep. Beep._

 

“Really now?” Junmyeon grumbles to himself as he opens up his eyes to look at his phone. “Hello?”

 

“Hey, Junmyeon. I hope I didn’t wake you up or anything,” a female voice says. “I heard you drank a lot last night. Do you have a hangover?”

 

“No, I don’t have a hangover,” Junmyeon lies, rubbing his aching head. “Who’s this?”

 

The female sighs. “Don’t you remember my voice?”

 

“What do you want, Irene?”

 

“Can’t you for just one day stop talking to me like I killed your son?” the female tenses up.

 

“Can’t you for one day stop pretending like you didn’t hurt me all those months ago?”

 

Irene stays quiet, yet Junmyeon can hear a tired sigh coming from the other side. “I didn’t mean it, it was…”

 

“I don’t care. You still did it anyway.”

 

“Junmyeon, can we just talk? Please? And can you please just call me Joohyun?” Junmyeon hears a silent “God, I hate you”.

 

Junmyeon lets out a big sigh. “What is it that you want to talk to me about?”

 

“Everything.”

 

 _Maybe a night out with an ex wouldn’t be so bad. Who knows, maybe she’ll get to replace Park Chanyeol in my heart._ “Dinner tomorrow? You can pick the place if you want.”

 

“That sushi place in the city?”

 

“Sure. Do you need me to pick you up?”

 

He’s pretty sure he just heard Irene chuckle for the first time in forever. “Would be nice but I don’t think that’s necessary. Let’s just meet up at the sushi place.”

 

“Alright then. See you tomorrow.”

 

“Bye, Junmyeon.”

 

Junmyeon can swear there’s still a slight hint of fondness in Irene’s voice. But now it’s eleven in the morning and Junmyeon realises he overslept and he needs to start preparing for that day’s music lecture (and dinner with the handsome Kyuhyun). He walks out of his room, only to find Minseok teaching Jongdae biochemistry in the living room.

 

“Oh, look who’s finally up,” Jongdae teases. “How many shots did you get last night?”

 

“Shut up, Jongdae,” Junmyeon grumbles, yawning.

 

“A lot, obviously. Look at him right now. He’s a mess,” Minseok interrupts. “Anyway, that’s enough. Focus on the lesson, Jongdae.”

 

“How did he even get home last night? I’m pretty sure Yoona noona ended up going home with the girls and left Junmyeon drinking by himself at the bar.”

 

Minseok sighs. “Jongdae. Stoichiometry.”

 

 _It’s too early for this shit,_ Junmyeon scratches his eyes as he walks into the bathroom. As cold water splashes down his body, he can’t help but think of what really happened last night. Yes, he danced with Kyuhyun, got a cab for him, went back inside to find Yoona and Taeyeon gone, and started drinking by himself at the bar...but how exactly did he even get home?

 

He remembers a callous, huge hand on his shoulder, a pair of arms lifting him up. He remembers a deep voice calling out his name. But who exactly was that and what did he do to Junmyeon that night?

 

“Holy shit, Junmyeon. How much did you even drink?” the voice asked. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

 

Junmyeon remembers resisting, almost shoving the man to the ground, but failing in doing so since he’s bigger than Junmyeon and Junmyeon loses all his strength when he’s drunk out of his mind. He remembers being carried on someone’s back out of the club, callous hands placing him carefully on the passenger’s seat.

 

He remembers engine sounds. Music playing on a car stereo. A pair of hands carrying him to bed and placing his head gently on his pillow. Someone closing the door and leaving.

 

_Weird._

 

*

 

Today’s music lecture is as awkward as it will ever be.

 

Especially because Park Chanyeol, out of all people, chooses to sit right next to Junmyeon.

 

“Jesus take the wheel,” Junmyeon mutters unconsciously under his breath. _What the hell, Junmyeon?_

 

“I didn’t know this was a bible study class,” _that_ familiar deep voice calls out, his big eyes now looking at Junmyeon. “Am I in the wrong lecture hall?”

 

“The board right there says MUSC2261,” Kyungsoo points at the class schedule board.

 

Chanyeol shrugs. “Oh, well. I thought I heard someone say -“

 

Kyungsoo gestures at the lecturer who has just arrived, putting his finger to his mouth. “Shut. Up.”

 

Chanyeol sighs as he looks at the boy next to him, this time with a slight smirk of fascination on his face. He can’t believe Junmyeon doesn’t remember a thing. But when Junmyeon turns around to face him, he replaces the smirk with a soft smile.

 

What pains Junmyeon is that he looks better than ever. Colour has gone back to his face, his squishy cheeks healthily rosy, his hair styled up with _lots_ of gel, and his angelic smile - everything just screams “how is he okay?” to Junmyeon. He can’t wait until the class ends so he can hide away in embarrassment.

 

But he doesn’t get to, because Park Chanyeol, with his long, fast legs, is quick enough to open the door for him when he’s about to walk out and knock his head on the door.

 

“Bad hangover?” the taller male smirks.

 

Junmyeon shakes his head.

 

“You could barely walk out of class,” Chanyeol smiles even wider, his long fingers fishing for something inside his pocket. “Here.”

 

“What’s that?”

 

“Thank me later.”

 

_Did he just give me painkillers for the hangover out of nowhere?_

 

Before Junmyeon can say anything, Chanyeol’s already more than ten meters away from him, now talking to the Seohyun girl he met the other day with Yoona. Junmyeon can’t help but be disgusted at the sight of Chanyeol putting his arm around her. What is it with him and moving on so quickly from one love interest to another? Yesterday he was kissing Jongdae, now he’s cuddling one of Yoona’s friends.

 

The way he looks at her is totally different than when he looks at Jongdae. Maybe Jongdae was nothing more than a fuck buddy. Maybe he’s getting serious with Seohyun. Who knows?

 

Junmyeon can’t take any more of this bullshit.

 

>Kim Junmyeon: hey yoona

>Im Yoona: hey! What’s up? :)

>Kim Junmyeon: is chanyeol dating seohyun-ssi now?

>Im Yoona: I’m not sure, seohyun’s never told me anything about dating chanyeol so far!

>Im Yoona: if anything I know he used to date hyoyeon...

>Kim Junmyeon: are you serious?

>Im Yoona: yes, why? They only dated for a while tho! :(

>Kim Junmyeon: oh, what happened between them? :(

>Im Yoona: chanyeol left her. Sadly :(

>Kim Junmyeon: why would anyone leave hyoyeon-ssi...she’s a full package...

>Im Yoona: look, chanyeol’s a nice guy. He’s a total sweetheart. But I heard from taeyeon unnie he has issues when it comes to relationships. He changes his lovers like he changes his hobbies

 

 _Jeez. What is it that Taeyeon doesn’t know?_ Junmyeon shakes his head.

 

>Kim Junmyeon: good to know

>Im Yoona: are you okay?

>Kim Junmyeon: yes, I’m perfectly fine.

>Im Yoona: you’d better be. You have a date with kyuhyun-ssi tonight!

>Kim Junmyeon: yup, which is why I need to rush to the city right about now. Talk to you later?

>Im Yoona: alright! Text me and taeng unnie the deets later!

 

Since Sehun isn’t around to boost his confidence, Yoona is Junmyeon’s best bet (second being Minho, but he’s busy enough as it is). Yoona’s always been there for him through thick and thin, so has Minho.

 

Just as Junmyeon is about to put his phone back in his pocket, it beeps yet again.

 

>Zhang Yixing: hey

>Zhang Yixing: i need to talk to you, it’s important

>Kim Junmyeon: ?

>Zhang Yixing: dinner on Thursday, 7 PM. McDonalds. I’m paying

>Kim Junmyeon: ok

 

The fancy restaurant Junmyeon picked for his date with Kyuhyun is one of the best he’s been to over the course of his studies in Australia. Of course, Kyuhyun is five minutes early, sitting on one of the chairs waiting for Junmyeon.

 

“Hi, Kyuhyun,” Junmyeon smiles. “How’s your day?”

 

“Had a lecture on sustainability today, was pretty interesting. How about you?”

 

“Well...a day just like any other, I guess.”

 

“Hm. Well, shall we order something?”

 

_I’m not really hungry._

 

“Oh, yeah, haha,” Junmyeon remarks, looking up at the waiter. “I’ll have the linguini carbonara and Sauvignon please.”

 

“I’ll have the gnocchi, thank you.”

 

By the time the food is served, there hasn’t been much conversation going on between the two. Everything’s plain and simple, just a talk of how they usually spend their days and what they were looking for on Tinder.

 

Junmyeon hates to admit it, but he misses talking about less superficial stuff with another guy.

 

“Hey, how come you didn’t order any drink?”

 

Kyuhyun shakes his head. “I don’t drink, smoke, or take any other addictive substance. I only allow myself to have one addiction in life, and that’s jajangmyeon. Or I can let the other Myeon take over my life too.”

 

A wink. Junmyeon takes a sip of his Sauvignon. When the date ends, Junmyeon walks Kyuhyun home, being the gentleman he is.

 

“You seem a bit distraught,” Kyuhyun points out.

 

“Oh, it’s nothing, I’m just...tired.”

 

“Maybe this will take your mind off things, since it’s late and no one’s around.”

 

Kyuhyun plants a hard kiss on Junmyeon’s lips, as the smaller man grabs a hold of his back and smashes his lips back, tongues touching as they grope each other in ecstasy, Junmyeon’s hand on Kyuhyun’s thigh, smacking and grabbing tightly.

 

“Fuck, you’re a good kisser,” Junmyeon pants.

 

“I know. You’ll get more of it if we get a second date.”

 

“I’ll let you know. Good night, Kyuhyun.”

 

“Good night.”

 

*

 

First dinner off his checklist. One out of three.

 

Junmyeon doesn’t know why he’s saying yes to these people. Maybe it’s because Chanyeol’s saying yes to Jongdae, Seohyun, and God knows who else he’s trying to court. Chanyeol can get in anyone’s pants with his charm and looks, and Junmyeon thinks, if Chanyeol can do it then why can’t he do it?

 

He has the looks and half the charm too.

 

He sees Irene walking into the restaurant, dressed up in a grey fur sweater and a knee-length white skirt that compliments her smooth legs. If only she wasn’t his ex, Junmyeon would’ve flirted right away.

 

“Hello,” Irene gives him an awkward smile.

 

“What happened to avoiding me and flirting with Sehun?”

 

Irene scoffs. “Sehun doesn’t like me.”

 

“Then what did you come to talk to me about?”

 

Irene shrugs. “Doesn’t it just pain you when you’re in love with a person for a year, you hurt them really bad, and now they’re a mess because of it?”

 

“Me? A mess?”

 

Irene nods. “Kyuhyun, Seulgi, Leeteuk, Amber, Lee Ji-eun, and Seungri. I know about them.”

 

“How -“

 

“That night. At the Elyxion. You got really drunk and made out with all of them. I was there, remember?”

 

 _Holy fuck._ “Irene, I…”

 

“What? You think it didn’t hurt me to see you with all these commitment issues after we broke up? You think it didn’t hurt me to see you drink so much and make out with these random guys because I hurt you?”

 

“It’s not you, it’s…”

 

“When you almost knocked yourself out from all the alcohol, Park Chanyeol was the one who stopped you from drinking and brought you home. So don’t say it’s Chanyeol’s fault. I know about him hitting on you and you running away from his house even though it’s really obvious you like him too. Otherwise you wouldn’t have asked him out on date so many times and stayed overnight to take care of him.”

 

“Chanyeol?”

 

Irene has just dropped the bomb.

 

“I’m close with Taeyeon unnie, remember? She knows everything.”

 

“Oh, yeah,” Junmyeon bites his lip. “But didn’t Chanyeol go home…”

 

“He left something at the club that night. He went back to pick it up and saw you drunk out of your mind.”

 

“Okay, I was drunk and I made out with many people,” Junmyeon fake-smiles. “So what?”

 

Irene sighs. “You never got _that_ drunk, Junmyeon. You need to stop. I know I messed you up. You started playing around with people’s hearts and self-destructing ever since we broke up.”

 

“Playing with people’s hearts? Self-destructing?” Junmyeon scoffs. “How so?”

 

“That Cho Kyuhyun guy. He’s genuinely interested in you. But you’re only in it for the fun and you’re leading him on. You almost drank yourself to the point where you could’ve passed out - you’ve never done that before. I know you, Kim Junmyeon. And I feel responsible for messing you up.”

 

Junmyeon laughs nervously. “You’re not the only one who messed me up. It’s you, Yixing, Chanyeol, and my mom at the same time.”

 

“Chanyeol? How the hell did Chanyeol mess you up?”

 

“He used to be the Korean society’s number one playboy. After confessing to me, he went around kissing Jongdae and cuddling a postgraduate student. How am I supposed to trust him after _that_ happened?”

 

Now Irene looks completely lost. “Uh, probably because you rejected him in the first place and he thinks you’re not interested in him. People have different methods when it comes to moving on, Junmyeon.”

 

_She’s right, you know._

 

“Okay, makes sense. But why the hell does this bother you so much?”

 

“I still care about you, Junmyeon. Listen, I know I hurt you really bad. I know I was the one who caused you to have all these commitment issues, but I didn’t mean it, Junmyeon. Baekhyun threatened me, so I had to spill out your secret. And I’m sorry.”

 

Junmyeon shakes his head. “I know. Let’s just put everything in the past, shall we?”

 

“Fine then. We have a truce.”

 

“Also...since I’m a free man and you’re a free woman, can we do it one last time? And I mean one last time.”

 

Irene nods. “Anything for you, Junmyeon. But you’ll have to promise me one thing. After tonight, you won’t play around with people’s feelings and drink yourself to death anymore. Promise?”

 

“Promise.”

 

The road to Irene’s apartment is longer than it used to be for Junmyeon. Junmyeon remembers the times he used to pick her up, the times they used to go to fancy restaurants and eat dinner together. He remembers their first kiss, their first time. Everything felt so perfect until the day he heard whispers in the Korean students society about “the choir singer’s mom cheating on his dad with a younger man”.

 

And it’s all Irene and Baekhyun’s fault.

 

As soon as they arrive, Junmyeon closes the bedroom door behind him and unbuttons his shirt before pushing Irene to the bed, planting a chaste kiss on the female’s tinted red lips.

 

“For the old times,” Junmyeon whispers sexily, tracing the skin on Irene’s neck as the female blushes, smiling.

 

“For the old times,” Irene repeats, pulling Junmyeon closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took long to update!


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